This year’s Peking to Paris Rally has a real fight on its hands as two Australian crews are battling it out for the top spot in the Classics division. 81-year-old Gerry Crown and his teammate Matt Bryson are hanging on to their lead in the 1973 Leyland P76 with the ex-1974 World Cup Rally winning Citroen DS23, driven by Robbie Sherrard and Peter Washington, fighting to close the gap.
The Leyland has an overall total of 78h 13m 12s with the Citroen just over four minutes behind with a total of 78h 17m 31s. Current standings have seen Gerry winning nine trials to Robbie’s four. But it’s still all to play for with 23 days of competition remaining.
With the drivers’ facing new challenges every day – be it mechanical or environmental – the rest of the top five should not be counted out of the running yet either. Peter Lovett and Tim Smith are currently in third place in their 1965 Porsche 911, with over 16 minutes separating them from the top two. Fourth is the 1970 Beetle of American’s John and Brett Layzell, a further 16 minutes adrift, with the 1968 Datsun P510 of Paul and Mariella Kirkham holding on to fifth place.
In the Vintageants group of pre-war cars, there has been a complete turnaround in the standings with mechanical issues forcing the early leader further down the results. The British team of Phil Garratt and Kieron Brown are in the lead with their red 1937 Chevy Fangio Coupe with a total of 87h 7m 39s. New Zealanders Bruce and Ben Washington sit in second place with their 1929 Chrysler 75 Roadster, with a gap of over 38 minutes, while Brits Bill Cleyndert and Mark Van Hees, in the 1929 Ford Model A Speedster, are in third.
There have been six cars that have been forced to leave the competition so far with another half dozen still trying to catch up after waiting for repairs and spares in the workshop.
The Volkswagen Beetle of Garrick Staples and Hayden Burvill was forced to retire after it rolled when hitting a sudden gully at speed. The 1929 Rolls Royce 20 of Dom Bernaz and Guido Somazzi and Jan Pettersson and Catherine Ockernah’s 1964 Mercury Park Lane has also had to call it a day.
Major mechanical issues have also caused the competition to say goodbye to the 1933 Delage D6 Tourer, driven by Jan De Clerck and Jan Imschoot, the 1927 Vauxhall 14/40 of Matthew Telling and Andrew Wyers, and Paul Darrouzet and Ian Brown’s 1928 Packard Phaeton.
The remaining competitors are in great spirits even if their cars have barely survived the grueling pace and sand storms of Mongolia. Everything from pieces of garden chain to Loctite glue has been used to keep the cars motoring towards the French capital.
With 19 Time Trials under their belts, over 3,500kms travelled through the remotest parts of Mongolia and having spent the past six nights under canvas, the entrants now face the new challenge of Russia as they drive from the Russian border to Voronezh and the Ukraine over the next eleven days. The entrants will also face their longest day of driving in Russia as they travel 668kms from Novosibirsk to Omsk.
For more results, rally reports and exclusive picture galleries of the Peking to Paris Rally and information on future Endurance Rally Association events, visit www.endurorally.com.
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