the ultimate banger rally experience!
After a night of typical Motoscape style celebrations, it was now time for the remaining teams continuing onto Prague to bid farewell to their newfound rally friends who took part in the Venice rally. Some teams had celebrated a little bit too much and making the morning briefing was a tough ask, but with one day of challenges remaining and the title of Motoscape Champions still to play for, everyone was eager to see what the day had in store. The Tommy Tankers continued to entertain with a new fancy dress outfit each day!
Today we were travelling from Venice to Sopron in Hungary, which is approximately 345 miles, but today’s route does give teams the chance to take on another amazing pass, by driving through the Triglav national park in Slovenia, tackling the amazing Vršič Pass.
Every year we tell people that in our opinion it is better than the Stelvio Pass, and each and every team who takes on the pass agrees! It is an absolutely brilliant driving experience, the scenery in the national park is beautiful and the road leading up to the pass has sweeping bends that really do engage car and driver! It is the highest mountain pass in Slovenia, with a series of 48 hairpin bends, all of which are numbered. You can expect to pass through cliff like faces and see magnificent waterfalls, definitely something people remember!
The weather today was a bit rainy, so teams that didn’t want to push their cars too much in these conditions chose to head straight to the hotel. Others took the advice from the Motoscape Team and headed to Bled in Slovenia. Bled is situated on the edge of the same national park as the Vršič Pass. It has to be one of the most beautiful tourist spots in Europe, it is a bit of an hidden gem. The small town of Bled sits on an idyllic lake surrounded by some absolutely stunning scenery.
Onto the last day of the challenges and with the Hucknalls, Torquay Fore and the Tommy Tankers fighting it out for the top spot with just 2 points between the 3 teams, it was all to play for! It’s safe to say the teams were taking the challenges on this last day very seriously!
The teams headed into to the town Sopron to do the challenges that had a real Motoscape twist! The rain made the challenge even trickier, and when the teams arrived back at the hotel soaking wet through, it made everyone else on the rally smile! Armed with just a camera and their Motoscape challenge sheets, the teams were running round Sopron trying to locate monuments all before the 7pm deadline! The teams all said it was their favourite challenge of the rally so far, and that is why love this challenge too! It definitely met the definition of the word CHALLENGE, a great effort from all the teams.
You might be wondering who was the daily challenge winner? Well you will have to wait and see, as this will be announced at the final nights presentation tomorrow along with the overall 2014 Winners!
Onto car breakdowns and there was just one incident to report. Eric and Sarah from team Cabrach Radio (Sing along back O the bus) had a car mishap en-route which means the banger can’t continue. They didn’t make it Sopron in the evening, but they are hoping to get a hire car to head straight to Prague for final night.
There were no other major casualties though! The teams had to give the cars a bit of TLC at the hotel with the regular checks, but it looks like everyone should make to Prague, we’ll keep our fingers crossed!
Sometimes the main challenge on a banger rally is just for the car to make it all the way, so if you are thinking about doing a rally in the future, buy smart and make sure you use the car for a few weeks before setting off to iron out any potential problems.
Finally, we had the return of the Suffolk Mafia boys! After 2 nights missing in action due to their limo breaking down on the Mountain Passes on day 4, the lads made it to the hotel at 10pm with their hire car so they can continue the rally. It has been a bit quieter without these lively lads around the last couple of days, and everyone was glad to see them back on the rally.
Onto today’s destination and we were staying the Hungarian town Sopron (pronounced “Shopron” for any potential future visitors out there). Sopron lies only a few miles from the Austrian border, and sitting at the foot of the eastern Alps means it is set in beautiful countryside. It is regarded as one of the most important tourist towns of Hungary, famous for it’s wine and cheap dentistry. It is rich in culture with some wonderfully preserved old buildings making it one of Hungary’s most charming medieval cities. With its abundance of gothic and baroque buildings, it is like a mini Prague and a must of a visit.
During evening in Sopron and the Motoscape Team arranged an excellent buffet meal at the hotel. Teams then either had a few beers in the hotel or in the town, others chose to have an early night to recover from 6 days driving. Some teams also chose to relax in the hotel pool, sauna, jacuzzi and gymnasium ready for the final night in Prague tomorrow!
Hungary was quite a big change from Italy, cheep beer and free Wi-Fi puts a smile on everyone’s faces! There were still the usual suspects up to their tricks of not knowing when to go to bed (we’re looking at you Suffolk Mafia & Krazy G Superstars!), but as long as everyone is having fun that’s fine with us!
Day 6 offered a driving route most people would have never considered and Slovenia and the Vršič Pass is definitely a route people will remember.
Day 7, the final day of the rally, see’s the teams head to Prague (Czech Republic), which needs no introduction and all the remaining entrants are excited for a great day on the road and night out in the beautiful city of Prague. Find out how everyone gets on tomorrow!
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