Now that the rally is over and our intrepid Willys Jeep crew are back home and basking in the glory of their win, we have decided not to put any more of Phil's Diary up on this page. Firstly, because Phil is still writing the last few episodes and secondly, in Phil's own words, "You've had the taster, now wait for the book!".

We do hope you have enjoyed reading this page. Please email us to let us know what you thought of it. All messages will be forwarded to Phil and John.

These reports have been faxed back to the UK by Phil Surtees and John Bayliss, running number 97 in a 1942 Willys Jeep. As usual, the faxes occasionally loose a line of text, so please forgive any mysterious discontinuities in the narrative.

Day 1 - Day 3 No reports available

Tuesday 9^th September Day 4 Yinchuau to Lanzhou 501 kms

Arose 4.30am - Getting into this routine now. Breakfast at 5am, lobby at 5.30. Said ta-ra to a very despondent Doug Hill who has got to go off and get the Montague Vauxhall shipped back to Blighty. Himself (Montague) is to travel on with the rally in, very appropriately, the Australian entered Rolls Royce Phantom 5 which was used to ferry Her Majesty around the antipodes a few years back. Rally crews have christened it "Lizzies Taxi". Personally I shall be very surprised to see it in Paris, but who knows.

The travel notes said that Zhongwsi is noted for its huge pagoda temple and giant sand dunes. We noted it for its eye-stinging, nostril-burning pollution. The police re-routed the rally around the town, we think because they can't handle the crowd adulation for rally cars.

The Marmon (car 11) pulled off the road to film camels and promptly sank. Several rally crews had arrived on the scene and were helping to reinstate her to the tarmac when Volvo girls Francesca and Jennifer arrived. "Can we help" they enquired. "Probably not" came the chauvanistic reply. I would like to see his face in Paris!

John's got the squirts, but I'm still OK apart from one small bout in Peking.

We pass troops sitting on a grandstand hillside waving to competitors as they pass. The Jeep appears and this old soldier gets huge cheers accompanied with cries of "Jeepo Jeepo!"

Amazing sights on the road today included apparently mobile haystacks with people atop, conveyed by a single cylinder (Petter type) engined agricultural cultivator with a trailer behind. This was carrying more hay than we would put on an artic. Another was watching lorries piled high with beehives, with bees dutifully following. Both presumably on their way to market.

The road followed the Yellow River, climbing to 8000 feet in places. Here part of the Great Wall was mud built and now lies in ruins.

Thought for the day - "Can't beat good stone masonry".

Wednesday 10^th September Day 5 Rest Day at Lanzhou

Late breakfast and serviced "Jeepo" and generally pottered about. The girls had left at 8.30 to visit a workshop for more suspension repairs. That took 11 hours so not much in the way of sightseeing for them. Attrition rate is climbing and one rally official was heard to remark "If this continues only two cars will reach Paris" which is only 50% of the 1907 effort when 4 out of 5 cars made it.

Great food in a wonderful hotel and hot water to boot! Make the most of it because we are camping next.

Thursday 11^th September Day 6 Lanzhou to Koko Nor 475 kms

10.30am and we have covered 195 kms. Ambient temp 14 degrees C. We are running across a plateau at 10,000 ft. Trees mostly birch with some scrubby thorn. Mud houses, wheat and corn in the fields. The trees only line the roads and are three or four ragged rows deep. A small mud beam has been constructed to retain rain to feed the trees. Without this man made effort not even the birch would grow methinks. No hedges and no work for a dry stone waller! The tress are just starting to turn.

Vibration terrible. I believe every vehicle has a natural pace over a given surface and you just have to play around until you find it. On some very indifferent surfaces we can rattle (ouch) along at 80+ kph (50 mph) but the ones that we have most difficulty with , due to our very short 80 inch wheelbase, are the "washboard". Here we drop to 10 kph or less. Vibration takes its toll quite heavily, breaking springs, shock absorbers and chassis mounts on others but the Willys station wagon, ourselves and the two Land Rovers seem to be coping well. Not as much can be said for the rally support Vauxhall Fronteras whose shock absorbers are attaining temperatures more akin to an exhaust manifold.

The minute hand has fallen off the Speedpilot (rally timing clock) rendering it useless until we can fix it. Not exactly a major problem as it is a bit of a luxury and only serves to confirm John's impeccable calculations.

Xining sees us ignore a cop's frantic instruction to go left because the roadbook said straight on and no amendments had been received that morning. As it happened the police diversion was well policed and people who took it arrived at the time control ahead of us having missed some incredible scenes of one man and a barrow road reconstruction.

It's 11.40am and it's started to rain. Now 14 degrees C and dropping. Camping tonight at 10,000+ ft. The vibration has got to the wipers and we can't switch them off. Will have to jury rig a switch when we have a moment.

Loads on trucks can be wide ranging, from single product i.e. coal or multi such as furniture, clothing, corn sacks, goats, people and a horse - all on the same load. Only one kind of truck in use, basically a 10 ton payload drop side, sometimes used with a drawbar trailer. Wherever they have been there are no return loads, so can be seen carrying their own trailer or another truck complete with its crew of three still in the cab. A lot of these trucks run crab tracked, that is to say the rear axle doesn't quite follow the track of the front axle. I'm beginning to believe this is intentional so that they will run straight on cambered roads with sleeping drivers.

On arrival at our camp site …..…… rich but better this than too lean.

Nomadic Tibetians gathered around the vehicle greeting us with og-o. Police left them alone as they were too busy taking photos of each other next to the cars.

Friday 12^th September Day 7 Koko Nor to Golmund 580 kms.

Awoken by next door's dog barking at 2.30 am. By next door I mean what appears to be a semi-permanent holding further up the hill. Mentally threatening to put some lead in its left earhole if it didn't shut up, I turned over.

Arose at 4.30 am. Not too cold in the night, somewhere around 6 degrees C. Rained all night leaving pools of water on latrine roofs which had to be pushed off before you could get in.

Trucks coming the other way are snow covered so we might be in for some fun later today. We pass a salt lake at 11,000 ft before dropping towards Golmund at 8,500 ft. Didn't see any snow but usual gravel, loose stone road.

Francesca and Jennifer were directed to a welding shop to carry out more suspension repairs and missed supper. This was to prove a blessing in disguise.

Saturday 13^th September Day 8 Golmund to Tuotuoheyan 439 kms

Later start today. For us it's 8.42 and already it's 10 degrees C.

Mr Wong in a Malayan MGA engaged me in conversation whilst waiting for his start. Says he thinks we will do very well. "We have a strong car". I realised that I just hoped the occupants were as strong because this one wasn't feeling much that way at present.

Last night's hotel was, well, disgusting is too good a word. And this is the best hotel in quite a large industrial town. It does have half a dozen or so showpiece suites which you can no doubt get if you book 3 years in advance. Failing that beware. A German crew were so disgusted they refused the room and pitched their tent on the hotel's green welcome carpet. Food looked OK, but wasn't as we were now discovering. Never seen green squirts before.

Last night David Burlinson of Exodus said the road out remained fairly level for 30 kms then starts to climb dramatically. This reinforced our view that the next carb jet change was due which we carried out before leaving.

The Montame clothing we have incorporates an A5 sized clear plastic pocket on the right leg above the knee. This can be seen when sitting. John's is used for that most important rally document, the time card book. Mine is used for reminders and song sheets. Today in large writing, because we are to climb to 16,000 ft and the first real threat of altitude sickness, I have noted…… ….one time I suppose the rally doctor means all five together. We did take the precaution of bringing a small, just in case, oxygen bottle, which has been positioned handily behind John's seat.

20 mins after start up we have already climbed 600 ft. The engine is either thrashing in 2^nd or chugging in top (3^rd). A mechanical (operating on all three gears) would be very useful here to split the gearing not normally a problem but now starting to encounter power loss in the rarified atmosphere. We are managing between 60 to 80 kph and whilst only having to average 50 we have to press on to give us time in hand for the unforseen problems that may be ahead.

Stones (1), these are used to keep you on your side of the road. Before a rarely encountered bend, stones are set into the road surface on the crown and continue around the bend. As everyone drives up the middle or on whichever side seems to have the best surface, these stones do achieve lane discipline for a short time. Stones (2) are used by the numerous broken down lorries to demarcate a safe area where the crew can work on repairs. Unfortunately they don't bother to shift them when they move off, so the highway is littered with rows of stones running at right angles to the direction of travel.

It's 9.42 and we have just climbed 1800 ft in one hour and the temp is now 6 degrees C. Just passed Robby Hellers in a 1951 Sunbeam Talbot DHC. We usually pass him about 2 hours out each day. He starts 20 minutes ahead of us and we all leave at 1 minute intervals now. He's trundling along quite nicely so I'm sure all those Sunbeam Talbot owners will be pleased to hear that.

The Hon (Francesca) and her chum running car 62 start later than us and this morning we left them having front shock absorbers refitted by Tonnie and Herman, 2 Dutch guys running a similar Volvo, who have fallen for the Hon's inimitable charm. Last night had seen them obtain more repairs to the front wishbones. The bloke that built this car for them must have thought they were going to Blackpool for the illuminations. He really should examine his personal job specification.

Over breakfast, a cup of chinese tea, we were in conversation with Coopers and Lybrand team of 4 in a "pink" Rolls Royce 20/25. John Stuttard explained the jobs various crew members did, one of which was to choose the CDs. Whether this was said to phase us or not I don't know, but I did point out that we also had a tape/CD player built into our intercom system and later that day when passing them we went by nodding our heads to music.

Saturday 13^th ended in real crisis for me. Several times we stopped to find convenient cover to drop my pants. Severe case of the squirts. I didn't make it once and had to cut my knickers off with my Leatherman tool. I wont make that mistake again. John was similarly affected. All this stopping meant dropping time and inevitably getting stuck behind other vehicles on the difficult road repair diversions. We made the control on time though, so still no penalties.

At the campsite John got stuck in to put up the tents, whilst I lay head in arms against the Jeep. On top of the squirts I also had altitude sick headache. I collapsed into the tent swiftly followed by Paul's hot soup, who had also blown up my non-self inflating thermalite mattress (these things have an altitude problem - ouch). Sleep overhauled the misery whilst John was still beavering away refueling and rugging up the Jeep.

A little later Jennifer stuck her head in to see how I was and I invited her in, which offer she declined. She couldn't have been safer feeling as I was.

Awoke 4 times during the night for latrine gallops, still had a crashing head and damaged left hand was bloody cold. Temperature minus 6 degrees C.

Thought for the day: Essence of good team work is knowing when your team mate needs help.

Sunday 14^th September Day 9 Tuotuoheyan to Nagqu 433 kms

Another early start sees us climbing from 15000 to 17000 ft along the highest road in the world. The road gets worse. Either very indifferent tarmac or stoned loose surface complete with potholes awaiting tarmac or diverted off for several kms along seemingly impossible tracks. The only other vehicles are the ubiquitous 17 tonners whose crews always wave and cheer madly as do all the construction workers as we pass by. Improvements to the highway are well in hand. In several places the level has been further raised and in places is some 20 ft high putting it level with the telegraph wires. All road stone is quarried virtually at the roadside. A 45 degree slope batters each side, no edge markings and I can't remember the last time I saw a white line.

There are no Chinese Tourist Board campsites or if there are there are none on this road. We carry everything with us and Exodus provide food and latrines. We camp on the open steppe.

Had a better night, only had to gallop three times but still had the crashing head. John has found me a spare glove which I wear over a silk glove which in turn is worn over the scar management finger stalls for the damaged pinkies. This suffices at night and a Montame 'ski' type glove is added during the day.

Thought for the day: Remember if you nod off you fall off.

Monday 15^th September Day 10 Nagqu to Lhasa 341 kms

This stonking headache has got to be due to altitude sickness and dehydration. So to John I said you have got to make me drink more water. We each have a nifty two litre bladder strapped to our seat backs complete with plastic drinking tube and have a further 8 litres each daily reserve but finding the tube end when bouncing along is difficult and if you don't feel thirsty you don't drink. So John is to bully me. The other problem of course is bouncing along on a full bladder is uncomfortable so we have to stop for comfort breaks and that costs time.

Breakfast I did manage. Hot unsweetened rice pudding followed by scrambled egg and chappaties and lots of tea.

The road took us across a fairly lush plain with nomadic yak herders who like everyone else wave madly on sight of us. We pass a hot water spout and later learn that there is a thermal power station in the vicinity. This road has a roughness that the Jeep is fairly happy with, pattering along at 80 kph bearing in mind that we do have two shock absorbers at each corner instead of one.

For the second time I sacrifice my underpants to Leatherman.

We run into Lhasa (12,000 ft) at 3 pm. Temperature in the 20's C. Arable crops both sides of the road and we are ahead of schedule. The landscape has changed dramatically. Now much stonier and we have passed two small stone quarries working dressed building and paving stones. Part of the highway was also stone paved, much as the Romans would have done 2000 years ago. This surface I considered more comfortable than the tarmac!

On arrival at the Holiday Inn Lhasa, things are looking up. I suggest to John that he finds our room and showers and I will, like a good old hostler, attend to the Jeep's needs. This is more gamesmanship on our part. I grease, do plugs (lovely nut brown colour although number 3 still a bit lean), points, levels and tyre check. The Michelins don't look as if they have done 400 kms on smooth black top, let alone close to 4000 on what we've been on. All this is done in the shade (after some negotiation with hotel management), mostly parking where instructed in the sun. Five arrive on the backs of 17 tonners. Two Rollers, including Lizzie's Taxi, a Bentley, a Buick and a Mercedes. Oh the ignomony of it. Could not a sheet have been found to hide the shame?

Service done, John reappears looking refreshed and cool and still the late runners arrive.

Later that evening results to date are posted. Still 25 cars without penalties and we are one. This is unusual and many of the competitors consider the timing too slack. Rumour is that rally officials are getting flack from the press along the lines of "What are you running, a rally or a Norwich Union Sunday run?" Things will soon get tougher I'm sure.

Slept fitfully and spent 2 hours on loo drafting this.

Tuesday 16^th September Day 11 Lhasa Rest Day

Jeep having been serviced the previous day we took it to a "car wash" with Paul and Paul's (Minnasian/Grogan) Peugeot. This was a hoot. Car wash consisted of a diesel engined water pump adjacent to a stream and five frantic women. 10 mins later and 10 yuhan lighter (about 70p) the vehicles are close to pristine. Paul then decides to visit a Peugeot dealer spotted on the way in yesterday. We avail ourselves of the ramp facilities to inspect the undersides for chassis cracks, damage etc. Beats lying on your back in sticky heat.

Back to the hotel, sightseeing for some, lounge about for others and I write this whilst most crews are outside still toiling in the sun over broken cars alongside our pristine rugged up motors. The girls' Volvo is also pristine for it is they who spotted the car wash. But they now have another problem, a broken rear brake drum. Another old secondhand part giving up the ghost when new should have been fitted. It is decided to isolate this drum until a replacement can be sourced.

Yes I know - this all sounds like we are heading for a fall but all Jeeps carry a timber shafted axe strapped to the side, primarily not for pioneering but for touching of wood and I do plenty of that.

More rumours abound. This time about the road closure near to Nyalam close to the Nepalese border. The road apparently has been closed due to land slip for some months and as the monsoons are approaching the Chinese are not too fussed about clearing it only to have to inevitably do it again. The options appear to be to go up to Nyalam, 3 days drive, camp and wait or back to Golmund (the pits) and north to Kashmir. This could be a problem for French passport holders.

Thought for today: Watch this space.

POSTCARD RECEIVED FROM LHASA

Tuesday 16/9. Rest day after 3850 kms. 94 starters now reduced to 87. 25 are still penalty free including us. Jeep running well, keep your fingers (bad pun!) crossed for us. John & Phil.

Wednesday 17^th September Day 12 Lhasa to Xingaze

The day started well - no gallops to the loo in the night. No meals yesterday since breakfast and drank only water. Risked another light breakfast this morning and hope this isn't a mistake! Went to the loo three times before leaving the hotel and this is the first day without a permanent headache. Things are looking up!

Our start time was 9.05. Now that the results team have had opportunity to sort themselves out, all competitors have been re-seeded. The classics (1950-68) vehicles started at 8:00 on one minute intervals in lowest penalty - out first order (not in car number order as previously). They were followed by the Vintagents (pre 1950) using the same principle. There were 6 cars in this age group, including 2 identical 1950 Ford Club Coupes, beautifully turned out and crewed by 4 really nice American blokes and a Citroen 2CV crewed by two Dutch guys. The 2CV arrived in Lhasa with broken front suspension. In order to keep the front end off the ground they unbolted everything they could off the front and taken it in the back together with the largest of the 2 crew. This gave them just enough weight transfer to the rear to be mobile. 11 hours work in a Lhasa workshop put matters right. Two Land Rovers and ourselves made up the 6.

The re-seeding had brought with it tougher timing over tougher roads. The organisers' object is for everyone to incur penalties and of course the one that gets the least wins. As it stands at this moment there are 25 cars in first place!

The road used was the better of two possibilities but the authorities wouldn't allow us to use the other one. The one used was in worse condition than anything previous. It ran alongside a river for much of the day. When I say alongside, I mean anything from 20 to 200ft above with unguarded drops and sections of road had decided to join the river. The usual lorries were there to be contended with as well. Our horns, neither of them, are powerful enough or the drivers are asleep! We also suffered baulking from fellow competitors, towing vehicles and liason vehicles on previous days, but it came to a head today so I decided to have a word with a senior rally official hoping that he would just have a quiet word in their respective ears.

Xingaze sits at 12,600 feet but to get here we had to climb two passes, Kamba La at 15,600 and Karo La at 16,300. This is Tibet's second largest town and a major centre of Bhuddism. John Thompson (Triumph Vitesse) asked if I wanted to join him on a visit to the monastry but I declined. I didn't feel confident enough to stray too far from a loo yet! Only had to stop on the road once today for an emergency gallop. Perhaps I shouldn't have had that breakfast. I didn't make it in the hotel this evening though and had to cut away the third pair of sacrificial knickers. Jennifer (The Hon's chum remember) has given me a couple of ladies thingys so that if I do go when I shouldn't go and find I have gone I wont soil everything else! (Is this becoming Phil's diarrhea diary?)

Francesca and Jennifer dropped 25 mins on the road today on timed sections but don't appear to be too concerned. They are taking the view that as the car is so badly prepared, it is better to adopt a Steady Eddy approach and get there. I have reminded them of the old rally saying that "in order to win you have to first finish" and that their direct competitors for the Ladies Cup may well break something serious that proves unrepairable. They also dropped time today and came in whinging about the times being too tough. Don't they know they are on a rally?

Other sour grapes competitors were gathered around the results posting commenting on how well three of the four 4-wheel drives were doing. Taking exception to this I carefully explained that what we had travelled so far was by road and that it was no different for us than for anyone else. We can't use 4-wheel drive on a road as none of these vehicles have a centre differential and the 4WD option is only there for ploughed fields and bogs. If the 4WD vehicles are still up there amongst the leaders it is because they were built stronger for military or agricultural use and possibly their drivers made a better choice of vehicle. That remains to be seen of course as to date we have only covered 20% of the route.

I am pleased that co-driver John seems to be getting a lot more out of the rally than at first thought with his new found filming interest. He's debriefing with the guys who are making the TV series and they are giving him a lot of technical help.

Nigel Webb (Mk VII Jaguar) caught us up in Lhasa only for me to have to tow him out of a hole today, but we had the time in hand. His problem had been electrical and this was exacerbated by the rally support crew who left him with a major problem and told him to return to Peking! Nigel aint that sort of bloke. He fixed the problem and then drove all daylight hours and some night ones when safe to catch up the field. Bearing in mind that this included off-road excursions that were hairy in daylight, to do them at night has got to be - well - exciting.

The hotel's not bad, even if it does have the air of a former barracks with its wide staircases and corridors, but like a lot of China seems to suffer from "brownouts" (american expression for intermittent blackouts). I left supper alone and drank more vitamin C flavoured water.

Tibetan people are very friendly, as were the Chinese, but seem to know even less about the delights of soap and water.

Quote of the day after one incident (moment) on the mountain road. John says "It's OK Phil, there's not enough oxygen at this altitude to get my heart going so I can't panic!"

Day13-Day15 No reports

Sunday 21st September Day 16 Rest Day in Katmandu

Terrific hotel the Yak and Yeti, partly built in colonial times by the fellow who built the Taj Mahal - that's what it said on the handout - as one of his summer palaces. Anyway it's pretty dam good. Food is wonderful but bar service is slow. Bit like China, things run on "People Time". However very pleasant place if a bit humid.

Worked on the car all day today, after servicing JB returned with the repaired jerry can bracket and some air horns. I can't say the repair was a craftsman like job but it will suffice. John's tale (filmed) of the antics in this workshop were hair raising. Bare wires hung from the wall and to switch a piece of eqipment on it's feed wire, also bare, was simply dropped over the "ring main". Welding was done without goggles, and at best sunglasses, and metal cutting was a two man operation with a hammer and chisel, the latter being held by a hazel twig much as stone is split in quarries even today.

In John's absence I had gained a friend namely "Uddhab Raj Ghimire", a local (27 year old?) student. Apparently many Nepalese men are unemployed so they stay at college. This is probably because they wont do the women's work! Uddhab had befriended me as a Englishman to improve his English. A quiet, gentle man and very willing helper, keen to run any errands or even to hold the sun-defeating brolley. He stayed most of the day and helped me to fit our new defense weapon, the air horns. Why did these simple tasks take from 9am to 6pm? Too bloody hot to go any faster and not even Slippery Surtees could find any shade this time.

At 18.30 hrs and having changed out of grey overalls we joined a reception given by a representative of the Royal Family. Usual very strong gin & tonics and even stronger Bacardi & cokes - like ¾ glass of spirit with a little fizzy water.

Monday 22^nd September Day 17 Rest Day (2) in Katmandu

Nowt to do on the car of course so I determined to catch up with this diary after taking the cars for a car wash and running into town to buy a replacement back up camera. An Olympus 120 I bought before leaving England lasted 14 days. Full of grit and sand it wont switch or lens drive. It wasn't abused, just used in an open car and they do say it's weatherproof! Anyway down to camera shop row, this section of street contains perhaps a dozen camera shops and we decided to haggle our way down them. Too smart for us these little Nepalese camera salesmen. Obviously operating a ring. Each shop we went in and on asking the price of a particular model a phone call was made before an answer was given. With the benefit of hindsight the four of us should have visited four shops simultaneously, however we didn't and back to the first shop I purchased another Olympus Multi Zoom 115. Sucker for punishment. Well this has a different switch action and lens cover, is Japanese made - my 120 was Korean. Comes in a lovely shade of gold (champagne) ducky. It also cost 2/3 of what it would be in England. I did manage a free film out of the tight-fisted little Nepalese man.

Back to the hotel for a late lunch, remember what I said about slow moving bar staff, late lunch became high tea and then it was off to a drivers briefing.

Philip Young chaired the meeting complete with a splendid black eye. "You're right, he hasn't been seen for a couple of days", someone remarked "Wonder how he got that?" Disgruntled competitor?, disgruntled marshal?, disgruntled hotel staff?, disgruntled support crew?, the list is endless. Felt like giving him one myself when we discovered that the start order was to be numerical and not seeded. i.e. We as car 97, together with "four wheel drives" were to run at the back for the next two days. Obviously to be used as unofficial sweepers to aid the distressed. Nigel (Series 1 Landrover) announced that he wouldn't stop for anyone. John and I together with Carolyn and David in the Series 2 Landrover kept an open mind concluding that if time permitted (we are on a rally after all) we would help and anyway we may have to as the second day out (day 19) includes the apparently dreadful 8 or more bridgeless river crossings and if someone is out in front stuck our passage may be blocked. (Max Wall reputedly got thrown off BBC TV for telling the joke about meeting Sabrina on a mountain pass and being unable to proceed for lack of room. Didn't know whether to toss himself off or block her passage!)

Had another British Embassy reception with lovely nibbles and Pimms.

Later that evening managed to write and fax a couple of days diary. Will I ever catch up?

Tuesday 23^rd Sepember Day 18 Katmandu to Kohalpur 498 kms

Left Katmandu with some regrets, nice place (mostly), nice people and not enough time. Wouldn't mind coming back here. The roads are remarkably good for a third world country , in fact they are a lot better than some of those highly enjoyable back country Irish roads. What's the difference between a road in Cavangh and a cigarette? - there's more tar in a cigarette! Even the pot-holey sections show some signs of repair by the yellow-helmeted road workers.

The new air horns are really doing their job. Nepalese, as the Chinese, don't use mirrors BUT they do react when you horn blow. Painted on the backs of busses and trucks is the legend "BLOW HORN" in 18" high letters. Smaller underneath are instructions on which side to pass!

In China concentration was fully utilised watching the road for holes, bumps, ruts, washouts, washboard and/or non-existence. In Nepal the concentration was directed at people, young, old, uniformed school kids, walking, biking, triking, gamboling even, together with dogs, cows, water buffalo and tigers!! Didn't see any of the latter. The east-west highway is almost one continuous ribbon development from Katmandu to Kohalpur. Everyone waves and each village has a reception committee, some complete with nubile dancing girls and drums. The amazing thing was the enthusiasm, bearing in mind that we were running at the back of the field and these folk had probably seen 80+ cars already, they launched themselves again into frenzied welcome. Being Brits seemed to be icing on the cake for them. School children would run alongside and press scraps of paper into your hand with their name and address on and scribbled messages. Their big sisters giggled coyly if you threw them as much as a glance. And those sarong things - woof woof lovely tight… well that's enough of that now, suffice to say again woof woof.

Tony Buckingham, in one of the Astons, made himself unpopular with some of the other competitors by clamping an orange flashing lamp to his roof. This gave others the mirror impression of an emergency service vehicle, so they moved over only to find it was Tone & Simon. More sour grapers. I think it showed initiative myself, as one who gets fed up with being baulked. I wish I could procure a police siren and lamp.

Arrive at camp site in the dark, the joys of running at the back. Campsite well lit though, but on close examination decided to stay well away from the lighting system. This comprised of bamboo poles every 30 feet or so onto which were strapped one or two flourescent tubes and starters hand wired (no fittings). Strung from pole to pole were two nailed wires each having a link to the starter. Would have been fun if it had rained. Another very good reason to stay away from the lights were the bugs, and I mean BUGS, millions of them together with frogs and crickets from one to five inches in length. Apparently Nepal has 10% of the world's bird population and birds eat bugs which is why! Is this a chicken and egg situation (bad pun).

It was very humid, so into the tent with both ends fastened back except for the mosquito nets. Slept well.

Armed Nepalese police guarded the site. Very smart guys these, in blue shirts, navy trousers, black boots, maroon berets & black webbing belts with polished brasses. The traffic cops are similarly attired, except caps with white bands, white belts, gloves and gaitors. Such a contrast to China whose police look like the cinema's version of film set Mexican revolutionaries. Have I previously mentioned this, sorry if I have but the pat on the back is very well deserved.

Wednesday 24^th September Day 19 Kohalpur to Nainital 364 kms

It's 29 degrees Celcius at 8 am and very humid. Bugs eat bugs eat bugs. I eat bananas as about the only safe thing served up by these revolting Indian caterers. Off we go running at the back of the field again as Mr Young's unofficial helpers. 8 river crossings which rumour has are terrible, more rally officials hype? A local truck driver called at the rally officials hotel (they get hotel, we get super bug camp site, why can't they slum it with us?) to ask where he might find a car 72. When asked why he responded that he had been employed to tow said car across all 8 river crossings, which he seemed to think was money for old rope.

Well the river crossings were just a bit of a paddle and nothing to phase any well driven car although I understand that some managed to stick themselves in 12 inches of water. We've crossed the Kanagi bridge, a terrific suspension bridge donated by the Japanese with a good highway proceeding it. The other side of the bridge - nothing! The road was more akin to a dried up river bed and had to be driven very slowly and carefully as you picked your way around car sized boulders choosing whichever route you thought best.

After the river crossings it's customs. The Nepalese deal with us swiftly with courtesy and with a cheery wave. We cross no-mans-land to be confronted by a queue. John got out and walked a recce. On return he announced " 70 cars up front and huge queues for passport and carnet". We grabbed the various documents and rushed back to get our places. Four nonsensical bureaucratic hours later we emerged battered from this experience. They were copying out onto hand ruled sheets of paper with carbon paper between, every detail from the passport including the visa and then to another queue for carnet and again passport details. Someone said we shouldn't complain as it was the British who taught them this bureaucratic nonsense. Someone else pointed out that we had also taught the Nepalese. It is interesting how each nation has developed these skills.

After crossing a long single track bridge, the next time control was reached, the first in India. "Hello you old beggar" was the greeting which I wasn't in much mood for, but on realising who it was I brightened up considerably. Peter Banham was marshalling and it was he and wife Betty who had helped son Daniel and myself so much on our first ever rally, the 1993 LE JOG. But for them I think we would still be wandering somewhere in the Scottish Highlands.

India - first impressions, roads aren't too bad but the people stink and there are an awful lot of them. I find this mind blowing that within the space of a mile or two people can change so dramatically. There is no gentle merging of nations or races. You have closed the book tightly and opened another and no matter how much you dislike the prose are committed to read on and pass through.

Early on I received a good demonstration of how to overtake. Like us and Nepal, India drives on the left. Catch up a truck or bus and blow. A hand emerges from the cab window holding the index finger aloft. "Wait one moment" and then the hand moves from vertical to horizontal and with palm …….. go past. This is done almost gracefully.

It is now getting dark and the horrors of driving in India are becoming increasingly more obvious by the minute. Every truck and bus coming the other way has its quartz halogen headlamps (if it has two) pointed directly at your windscreen. Cars, bicycles and motor bikes don't posses lights, front or rear. Every vehicle travelling in the same direction has either no lights at all or just headlamps staring into your mirror. There are no street lights but passing through villages there is some light spillage from the open fronted shops which give some aid to missing the pedestrians who teem over pavement-less road verges. Mixed in, to add variety, are rabid looking mangy dogs, buffalo, goats and of course the sacred cow. I announce to John that if I feel a bump I'm not stopping. He agrees. We have three hours of this culminating in a 30 km hill climb to Nainital some 5000 feet above the plain. I couldn't get out of first gear, grinding away at 3500 rpm, 500 short of maximum to spare the engine, but too slow to drop into second, where the revs would have dropped off the bottom of the torque band in this 3, widely spaced, geared car.

Three quarters of the way up we saw a gap in the boundary wall with rescue vehicles parked either side. Amongst them was one of the rally support vehicles so from this we surmised it must be a competitor. We couldn't guess who, as the whole bloody field was in front of us, but later found on arrival at the time control (with just 7 minutes to spare) that it was Nigel Challis in his family-owned-from-new Series 1 Landrover. Apparently Nigel & co-driver Anthony Jefferies are bruised and shocked but otherwise OK, but the Landy is definitely not. The thought of dropping off this road into the inky blackness isn't one that is entertained for too long for if it was you would get out and walk.

Indian food and Indian folk music and dancers were laid on but not too much of either were enjoyed for long as we were second car out in the morning at 8.02. Back to seeded running, Whoopee, having served our function as unpaid sweepers. So an 8am start this day, a 9pm finish, giving 13 hours solid driving and frontier form filling to be followed by an early start tomorrow. Don't complain, just go with the flow and be grateful for small mercies.

Thursday 25 September Day 20 Nanital to Delhi 350 kms

Nainital, now we can see it, looks an interesting place. At 6300 ft with a lake and popular with the Raj as a hill resort. At 8.02 our start, we charge back down the hill we had struggled to climb last night. We have 45 minutes to cover 33.7 kms, with a drop of something close to 5000 ft. This is hairy and I would rather not be able to see the view, stunning as it is. We clean it, just.

Later that day we cross the Ganges. Nothing to comment on here, except like everything else it seems extremely mucky.

Ashok Hotel Delhi is our night halt, nice hotel, pity about the bar staff. The British Embassy host a reception for us at 7pm and lord Montague is presented with a tie for being a nice guy. The embassy was a 5 minute walk from the hotel so you can see we are staying in the right part of town. It took another 5 minutes to cross the compound to the clubhouse.! Somebody tells me there are two types of Indians, Push Start and Pull Start. Push Starts have a red button on their forehead and Pull Starts wear turbans (better told with actions).

Back at the hotel we suffer several "brownouts", but the rest of the evening, what's left of it, is uneventful. Early to bed as we have a 4:01am start. Apparently the original plan was to stay north of Delhi in the Himalayan foothills, but the Indian hierarchy insisted we come to their capital. God knows why. So after a bloody awful boring drive through some of what must be the world's smelliest villages and battling with probably the world's worst drivers, we have got to repeat the exercise to get out. The early start is necessitated by the Indian Customs and Emigrations refusal to work past 16:30 at Wagah the border, even though their Pakistani colleagues are prepared to.

Friday 26^th September Day 21 Delhi to Lahore 600 kms

The Nepalese had graciously asked if they could stick a sticker on to our vehicle with the legend "Visit Nepal in 98". Some little git had removed it and replaced it with an advert for his indifferent Ashok Hotel. Needless to say this got removed pronto and in the unlikely event that I ever meet the blighter I will ram the remnants somewhere painful.

As anticipated we had an apalling drive. Those people have a death wish. They wander aimlessly about whether waking, riding or driving. Take for instance a dual carriageway. You are in the outside lane overtaking a bus and coming towards you is a cyclist. That's not all, his wife rides side-saddle on the luggage carrier and she has a kid in her arms. Another kid sits side-saddle on the crossbar. You are expected to get out of their way! It is their right! Well it was until they met me, I frightened a few of the arrogant little beggars, I don't mind admitting.

Anything I have ever seen written or heard spoken that is bad about India is true. The smell, the filth, the flies, the beggars, everything is true. It is revolting, give me China any day.

Indian customs and another farce. Everything was written out longhand again, all the passport, visa and carnet details entered into a book. This huge ledger was pre-ruled but on looking at the printed headings you could see that it had nothing to do with the matter in hand. It was just a book. 6 men but only one book. The boss wouldn't give them any more so 5 of the men might just as well have gone home. All this took place in a nice smart new building unlike the mud huts enjoyed at "India In". The nice smart new building suffered "brownouts" as did everything else and plugs don't appear to exist for the electric sockets as all the appliances seen just had bare wires stuffed in.

Formalities completed we crossed into Pakistan. 5 minutes saw the passports dealt with and three took care of the carnet. Everything stamped and initialed in the proper places. What a contrast. The officials smiled and motioned us to seats and you felt that in this country you are welcome.

26 kms later we arrive at the Avari Hotel, Lahore, to be greeted on the lawn by hotel staff with iced fruit drinks and iced garlands. Then to our rooms, very good. A quick shower and down to the open air restaurant. Brilliant food. Only one thing lacking and that's a drink in this "dry" Islamic state.

Saturday 27^th September Day 22 Rest Day at Lahore

Rest day means fix the car if it needs fixing and service it. Up early while it's still cool and skip breakfast they haven't started serving yet. Grease, check levels, plugs, points and a visual poke and prod to ensure all is in order.

One other job. We dig out one of the two space foil survival bags out of the "emergency" locker and convert part of this to a heat barrier wrapped around the fuel filters, pump and lines. This is another attempt to sort the continuing fuel vapourisation problem. All done by noon. A quick shower and a slow brunch before 2pm. I've booked myself on a guided tour of this ancient town of Lahore having got fed up with driving through with little or no Kodak time.

Immediately after the tour, back on the bus to the Governor's palace for - a reception, actually high tea. The place was being painted in readiness for the Queen's visit within the next few days. I asked of a governor's aide how often this gets done. "Oh," he replied, "twice a year if we have VIPs visiting twice or maybe not for two years if no-one comes." Seems like a good system!

Later, talking to the Governor himself, I asked him which of the three cars that had been brought up to represent the field he would choose to keep. The 1927 Mercedes 630K Sports, the 1928 4½ litre Bentley or the 1967 Rolls Royce Phantom Five. "Oh most certainly the Rolls" he determined. I laughed "Lizzie's Taxi." "Pardon," he enquired. "Oh that's what the rally crews call it," I confided, "It was her transport in Australia during her visit a few years back and we refer to it as Lizzie's Taxi". "I don't think I'd better tell her that," he remarked, "Oh I don't know, I understand she has a very keen wit and would probably enjoy the joke". But I don't think he'll risk it.

Sunday 23 September Day 23 Lahore to Multan 434 kms

Start time 9.02 and it's almost 30 degrees C and humid. Into my big yellow Ortlieb bag which contains my tent, sleeping bag and mattress, I put other items that I don't consider I will require before arrival home, then John and I unloaded these onto the film crew's Landrover. This has saved perhaps 20kg total. It has also enabled us to move the canvas vehicle cover from the scuttle and onto the wing, so freeing up the trailing edge of the bonnet which was raised to aid under bonnet air throughput. This must also help alleviate the fuel vapourisation problem.

10am and now 36 degrees. I've noticed Pakistan has, and to a lesser degree India, a lot of English style ponies and traps which don't appear to have evolved one jot in 100 years. These are pulled by mostly well kept spritely ponies.

11:30am and 37 degrees. You would think this road is a dual carriageway, in so much that it is two strips of black top with a central reservation and loose gravel hard shoulders. It isn't. Each carriageway is used by everyone and everything in each direction so in effect it is two parallel roads. But having said that I consider Pakistani drivers much better than Indian. Both countries drive on the left as in the UK, but in India trucks and busses hold the outside lane (right hand) of dual carriageways or the road crown on single. You can blow and blow and it is unlikely that they will move over. But it's perfectly OK to pass on the inside (left hand). They will confirm this by indicating which side you are to pass. So catch a bus/truck up and blow, he will flash his indicators left or right and you pass on that side. I did not see anyone at any time indicate to make a turn! We have a theory that they travel on the road crown/outer lane to avoid all the lane changing that would otherwise be necessary because of all the broken down trucks and slow moving tut-tuts. Pakistan on the other hand generally keeps to the left hand side of the road and should they have wandered towards the middle then give them a blow and they move smartly over. This assumes reasonable width carriageways, but a lot of the major roads comprise of only a single strip of black top some 8 or 9 feet wide edged by a hard shoulder some 6 ft wide comprising of loose stone and chatter. Overtaking means dropping two or sometimes all four wheels onto this unfriendly surface, but the Michelins are taking it all very well. Similarly, meeting a truck means you move over as they show extreme reluctance to do so. Presumably they are all owner-drivers which could also account for the extreme taste in vehicle design and livery. "Motor Mosaics". So meeting a truck, pick your spot and drop onto the "hard shoulder" but keep a very close eye on the surface ahead as it can and does cease to exist due to a wash out, i.e. no hard shoulder, just a 10'+ drop, or it can be pot holed so badly that to proceed above walking pace is extremely inadvisable. Meeting a vehicle of similar size poses less of a problem, even though the black top isn't apparently wide enough to accommodate both of you. Just proceed at your normal pace, maintaining a deadpan expression and they will do likewise. At the last moment before collision you both lean to the left taking the steering wheel with you. Your passengers are advised to do so also and usually do without being requested. Both vehicles then sheer past each other and you all lean right again. With practice this becomes one fluid body movement. Watching others do it ahead, it doesn't seem possible but it works. Of course if you can't maintain a deadpan expression you will be expected to take to the rough.

Having said this about the roads, there is a lot of evidence of new roads under construction. And we were directed onto one of these by the local police., These "not open to the public yet" roads are used by the public so they are not quite the flat out blast that they seem. Also, you have to divert from time to time because it seems the culverts are the last things to get built. As ever, divert means taking to totally unmade tracks across the countryside.

We arrive in Multan with only one of the two electric fuel pumps working. We have one for each tank, with completely independent fuel lines up to the changeover switch - designed like this in case we pick up bad fuel in one tank, as we try and fill each side at different sources. Each time I had switched to the left hand tank the pump had clattered noisily away without doing its job. On examination I found that the end had fallen off, so reassembled it and super glued it back on, together with one of my fingers. It still didn't work. Must have reassembled incorrectly I thought, but couldn't see how. Never mind we have a spare. Fitted this with a struggle and a gift of some fuel pipe as the unions had been badly fitted and found this didn't work. Yes it clattered away but didn't pump fuel. Paul Grogan appeared and said it needs priming. I didn't think so but didn't argue as I'm getting tired and I'm quite happy for a willing unpaid professional to take over. Priming the pump didn't work also, but when Paul is blowing back up the line he notices a weep of fuel from the in-line water trap. "Ahh - it's sucking air!" We couldn't seal it, so we by-passed it and now the pump works. We can now draw on both tanks again. This is important as tomorrow is a long day with fuel only randomly available in roadside cans.

After fuelling up and parking for the second time, 4 hours after the first, it's off to the Holiday Inn. We are bloody starving.

Over dinner we discover that Mr Fixit, Peter Banham, has been doing more work on the girls' Volvo and all is now well with "Gordon" again for tomorrow, they hope. Not a single day seems to go by without some work having to be done on this "shed".

Monday 29^th September Day 24 Multan to Quetta 624 kms

At 7:02am our start time it is 25 degrees C. Police and army everywhere to ensure our safety. Throughout the rally, in every country we had the benefit of armed guards. Not sure whether this is to protect us, or their population. We clean the first section, as do most people. This was 124 kms of less green countryside and include palm trees and camels.

Onto the second section we drop 10 minutes to the Citroen's remarkable eight and Ted's Ford Coupe 9. Most drop at least 20. This was a very tough 45 km hill pass with many switchbacks uphill and down, across dried up river beds, all single track and with a lot of truck traffic. I swear there wasn't a straight bit of road on all the 45 kms. This is where a different technique was adopted for the oncoming trucks. We just sat on the black top and face them down to force them to drop two wheels onto the roadside gravel. This enables us to slip by without stopping where otherwise we would have to negotiate each other at stalling speed. I think this works because the truck drivers take one look at the Jeep and realise that because of its lack of "soft skin" panels the driver doesn't give a shit, whereas he figures that anyone with a soft skin wont risk panel damage against his truck. We always give a toot and a cheery wave which is always returned as a mark of mutual respect.

At the time control at Fort Munro a fight broke out between some fundamentalist locals who objected to some of the rally crew women who stupidly weren't properly covered up (not the Hon and her chum) and the café proprietor and his mates who couldn't have cared less how undressed his customers were. It was just nice to have customers. We also heard that the section was cancelled because it was dangerous which seemed a bit silly to me - bit like stable doors and horses bolting.

….to be continued in the book…..…