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Potteries & South Cheshire MG Owners Club |
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AUSTRIA and the travels of the Potteries and South Cheshire MGOC Pictures Located In the Gallery (Click here)
Some 12 months prior to this trip taking place the idea was first muted for the club to drive to Austria, to a car rally that takes place every year in Kitzbuhel. This idea had lit the imagination of quite a few of the members of the club so further enquiries were made and the dates of the rally found with the help of Peter Krejci one of the MGOCs contacts in Austria. The event was called The Kitzbuhel AlpenRallye due to be held in 2007 between the 30th May and the 2nd June. Stan and Jackie the events organisers for our club had visited Austria on a regular basis over the past 5 years and had stayed close to Kitzbuhel at a delightful little village called Itter, so in some respects the accommodation was arranged. It was now decision time, we had the event, we had the dates and finally we had accommodation, names please, was the next question and in pioneering style 7 couples came forward with deposits Stan & Jackie (B), Bob & Maggs (RV8), Ian & Anne (RV8), Ken & Dot (GT), John & June (B), John & Josie (F) and Keith & Helen (Golf Support vehicle), 2 couples had never driven abroad before. Everything now started to fall into place, through Stan & Jackie the accommodation was booked in Itter. Archie another of our members assisted with our booking with Eurotunnel, Ian took control of planning the routes outward and return including the hotels. Bank Holiday Sunday morning 27th May arrived and everyone met at 7am, I led off and would do the first leg of the journey to Folkestone, as we started the rain also started. To break the journey stops were made at Warwick services and Clacketts Lane on the M25, as we approached Folkestone an unscheduled stop occurred, the GT had developed a drastic loss of power and accompanying noises, so we limped into the Eurotunnel terminal. The mechanics in the party decided it was a fuel problem and duly tweaked the mixture, it must have done the trick this car thankfully suffered no further problems for the whole trip. 35 minutes after boarding Eurotunnel we were disembarking in Calais (a wonderful way of crossing the channel) and rapidly moving onto the A16, led by Ian & Anne, and it was still raining right up until we arrived at our first night destination of the Ibis Hotel in Liege. Day 2 dawns and we set off hopefully to enjoy the sites along the Rhine, but as we emerged from the underground car park it was still raining, as the day progressed it was evident that any attempt at sight seeing on the journey would be futile because of the weather, driving on the Autobahns really was abysmal with visibility at zero on some occasions. So it was decided we should make directly for our second night destination of the Mercure in Wurzburg, and it was still raining. Day 3 should have been a short run to Itter admiring the Alps as we went, the day did not start well. As we got ready to leave the hotel car park, the inside of Stans B started to fill with smoke, the wires in his steering column had shorted, caused primarily by the petrol pump shorting against its cover, just one bag too many. Finally sorted out we set off only to be greeted as we exited the car park by this infernal rain which was following us, and true to form it stayed with us again all day 1000 miles in rain is no joke. Unfortunately again because of the weather sight seeing was limited to low cloud where we understood the Alps should have been. Despite everything we did arrive in Austria safely albeit rather wet and tired. We received a very warm welcome from our hosts Viv and Claire who were quite excited at the prospect of us all being there. Day 4 Hooray, the rain had stopped and the sun was shining, because of the snow falls a couple of days earlier the surrounding peaks were covered and it was a glorious site seeing them glistening. It was off down to Kitzbuhel to find the rally, it was a quiet start for scrutineering day, so some of the party took the local cable car to 6000ft to have a snowball fight Day 5 - a leisurely start to the day with a drive up to Zell am See, believing that by going this way we would see some of the rally cars on the road. While we were here a fellow MG driver left a welcoming postcard in one the cars, a nice gesture. We left Zell am See and headed towards Bruck fortunately it was a lovely afternoon so we took up a viewing position outside the local hotel and ordered drinks and enjoyed the cars exiting the junction, of course the contestants enjoyed the support and played to the audience. Day 6 Ever since we had arrived in Austria the weather had been gorgeous, being in the mountains however does mean that you get the isolated shower. Today looked good, so it was again roofs off and head for Jenbach to enjoy the rack and pinion railway that leads to Lake Achansee, a very large lake nestling in the foothills of surrounding mountains. Day 7 Big day for the rally today, a few of us set off early for a place called Going, we found a viewing point where the cars had to negotiate 2 bends in the wet, fortunately a hotel was handy that supplied us with drinks. It was now back to Kitzbuhel to see all the cars in the Park Ferme, an impressive sight to say the least, very little security and unrestricted access to inspect and admire. This was where we met a great guy called Jan Hendrikx from Germany driving a 1968 primrose MGB Roadster, a little eccentric but a real character. To end the day the cars undertake timed laps around the centre of Kitzbuhel, then park the cars anywhere in the town area, amazing what you can do in a country with no crime. One of our members found a webcam on a street in Kitzbuhel and enjoyed the parade of vehicles today, he also saw us stood in the middle of this street waving at a webcam, the locals thought we were mad, but he has the photo to prove it. Day 8 The group split today, with some wanting to go Salzburg and some of us just wanting a leisurely day in the local area exploring the Hexanwasser . Day 9 Now us lads had had their fun, we had to think of the girls so it was a trip to the local woodcarvers, followed by lunch at a lovely gasthof in the foothills, when leaving after lunch we had an escort of cows down the same piece of road we were using, they give them bells in Austria because the horns dont work !! Day 10 A split day again today, Stan unfortunately had an alternator problem with his car so we had to get him sorted out, the remainder of the party went off for the day to St Johan and Innsbruck. A local garage was able to sort out his problem but not until the next day, but we still managed to get some sight seeing in Worgl. Day 11 Last day in Austria today, but while we have been here it was like we were local celebrities even having taken part in a photo shoot in the centre of the village. We also had a visit at the guest house from the senior tourist information officer for the area. While we made the most of the final day most of us met up at some point in St Johan, a picturesque Tirolean town, today though they were celebrating the 70th birthday of the Bishop of St Johan. This event brought the Austrians out in their hundreds, all in National costume along with the gunfire salute it made it a very colourful and a noisy conclusion to the day. Day 12 We sadly say farewell to our hosts Viv and Claire and to Ausrtria, this time it is in blistering heat, our destination today is the Ibis Hotel in Koblenz a scenic detour via the Rhine had also been catered for, quite an uneventful journey today compared to the outward trip. Day 13 The final day knowing we will be home tonight having had a terrific holiday. The casualties Roadster 1 shorted out petrol pump & new alternator Roadster 2 loose wire on starter motor GT fuel problem RV8 1 broken rear window zip RV8 2 blown indicator bulb Support vehicle rear wheel bearing When all said and done, the conditions we endured and the distance we covered I think they performed excellently, minor problems really considering no vehicle was newer than 1996. The Heroes Our hosts Viv and Claire in Austria, and the 14 people who bit the bullet and did the trip and ended up with a great holiday
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Last Updated : 31 August 2007 |