4 to 15 June 2023Day 6Saint-Émilion to Carcassonne (393.9km)10 June 2023As well as passing through five distinct Departments,Gironde, Lot et Garonne, Tarn-et-Garonne, Tarn and theAude, we also encountered a new language. Occitan fromthe ancient land of Occitania which is still spoken alongsideFrench in parts of the south west of Europe.After yesterday’s rest day, the Organisers had the crews upbright and early with an 8am departure. Thanks to the rain aslight mist hung over the vineyards as the cars growled downthe driveway of the Château Grand Barrail Hôtel to begintheir journey. There were no Tests today, but three roadSections, ever changing countryside and some impressivearchitecture. For the run south the sun returned to its usualposition above us and burned away any lingering dampness.After 16km we arrived in Castillon-la-Bataille and crossedthe Dordogne on a bridge designed by Gustave Eiffel, beforeweaving through the countryside on a selection of backroads to the days first Section along the Route de Cornillou.This was a mixed landscape where open farmland gave wayto dense woodland with the occasional vineyard thrown infor good measure.There was a bit of a panic for Graham and MarinaGoodwin through this section, when their oil pump failedand the engine lost almost all of its precious black fluid.The quick thinking crew managed to prevent any damage tothe Bentley’s power plant and had enough spare lubricantto continue to the Time Control in La Grappe de Raisin inthe town of Monflanquin. Here they were able to speak tothe sweeps and take stock of the situation.Once Worth Birkill had stamped the timecards the Rallyset a course for another epic Section from the Châteaude Bonaguil. These were challenging roads, with countlesstracks and very few signposts. One side of the car had tobe well acquainted with their tripmeter to avoid arrivinglate for what proved to be another excellent lunch at thePhotos: gerardbrown.co.ukAlmost as direct as a TGV, today’s route was awatershed, a diagonal dash south and east. FromSaint-Émilion to Carcassonne we covered a lotof ground, both geographically and culturally,ranging from the influence of the Atlantic, to thatof the Mediterranean and the most southerly pointof our journey.Gavin and Diana Henderson, 1939 Frazer Nash-BMW 328www.rallytheglobe.com
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