4 to 15 June 2023Day 7Carcassonne to Valence (413.2km)11 June 2023Only one Section was scheduled today to put the focus on the undoubted main event, the Alès Circuit,where we enjoyed a blast around the main track, lunch in the paddock and two further frantic Testson the adjacent rally track. We also enjoyed more of France’s seemingly endless rural roads and evenmanaged a little sightseeing on the way home.Photos: gerardbrown.co.ukIt was another 8am start today and, through sleepy Sundaymorning Carcassonne, we had a cool and untroubled exitfrom the city. The road book led us across and along theAude and Canal du Midi, towards the foothills of the Montsde L’Espinou and the maquis of Languedoc-Roussillon.Dozens of agreeable villages rolled past us punctuatedby countless vineyards, olive groves and soon enough, theNeffiès Section. This chopped its way through a rugged andbroken landscape on a single-track road which was, thanksto some careful recce work, just passable by a La France.In Gignac we crossed the Hérault and caught a glimpse ofits gorges before making for Aniane and a Time Control inthe Salon de Thé - Cécile Ferrandi for some very welcomecoffee and pastries. The days first Passage Control soonfollowed on the Col de Fambétou, our first ‘mountain’ ofthe event, in the low lying, yet impressive, peaks of theMontagnes d’ Hortus. From Pic Saint-Loup we skirted theCévennes before crossing the Gardon d’Anduze and pullinginto the car park of the Alés Circuit.The first Test at this Pôle Mecanique had something of atrack day atmosphere where helmets were mandatory andthe French marshals reigned supreme. It was an incrediblesession on an exceptional track - the two laps which eachcar was allowed will be remembered for a long time. Lunchand another Time Control in the paddock gave the crews achance to compare notes and lap times, refuel themselvesand sort out any hair restyled by the helmets. At 31°C, withfull sun, things were getting sweaty and attempts at fixingelegant coiffures were wasted as two more Tests followed.The Alés Rally and the Alés Rally Consistency, saw thecrews having to match their first run time as closely aspossible on their second run. Round one of the Rally theGlobe ‘run what you brung’ championships, offered eachcrew the chance to lap an old tarmac circuit featuringsteep climbs, vicious descents and plenty of chicanes toconfound the pure drag racers.Our midday session in Alès had been great fun but, afterthe pressure of the track, the rally took something of awww.rallytheglobe.com
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