The first real test for our GT86 and one that counts. We have always had a preference for the Maas gravel in and around Bocholt, but this edition the weather gods had made it extra challenging. All the ingredients were there to make it an exciting rally. New car, new co, changing weather conditions and above all a lot of enthusiasm.
Photos: Frank Photographics, Rally_art Photography, Ronny Vandezande, Kevin Opsomer
In view of the overnight rainfall, we went for a safe choice of tyres on Saturday morning and opted for rain tyres. Overall grip was okay in most places, but in some situations there was a lot of mud on the track which made it particularly tricky in those places. The plan was to test the first loop.
On SS 2 Brueghel, with some very fast sections of Maas gravel, we were quite surprised by the grip on the wet yellow gravel. Super fun.
Despite the fact that it was already drying quite a bit, we decided to stay on the MW1 tyres for the next 2 stages Gerdingen and Veldhoven. In hindsight, maybe not the best choice since it dried up faster than we expected.
Loop 1 was done, the car felt good and the atmosphere in the Toyota was very relaxed.
SS 5 and 6 went a lot better and since Gerdingen was our favourite, we had to put our best foot forward.
We’ll blame it on our youthful enthusiasm, but on the oh-so-nice unpaved strips just after the start, we were having a bit too much fun. In the super long right we lost the fight with the back for a while, fortunately without major consequences because there was plenty of room for mistakes. “Shit happens” could be taken literally, because the local farmer had apparently sprayed the field with manure the day before. The Toyota was covered completely from top to bottom, unfortunately also with the accompanying smell. The smell also continued to haunt us at Veldhoven, but that certainly didn’t spoil the fun.
After a thorough cleaning at the service, the Toyota was immaculate again. In the meantime, the sun was already out on the service and a quick look at the rain radar predicted a 0% chance of rain for the next 2 hours. It’s time to put on slicks.
We were less than 5 minutes on our way to SS Goolder and the sky turned from blue to dark grey. Several seconds later, the rain was pouring down. Long live “rain radar”.
So we went into survival mode and all in all it wasn’t too bad. Some previously very muddy sections were even rinsed a bit clean, which even improved the grip.
After loop 2 it was again not very exciting on the service, apart from some cleaning there was little to do.
On to the last loop for another portion of gravel fun. No issues on the last 4 tests and mission accomplished !
We gained the necessary experience with the Toyota GT86 CS R3 and, above all, brought her to the finish line in one piece.
The 2024 edition may go down in the history books as the most challenging because of the severe weather conditions, but it remains a fantastic rally. Perfectly organized and always with a great atmosphere.
For R-Box, the mission has been more than accomplished! The Toyota didn’t budge and easily digested all the Maas mule. We learned a lot and had a lot of fun. What a great car!!
Thank you to our amazing team for their tireless effort and dedication. We couldn’t have achieved this without you.