Syd Stelvio Peking to Paris 25 - Day 7 – Jiayuguan to Dunhuang – 479km

Day 7 began in Jiayuguan, one of China’s major industrial cities, with the sun doing its best to perforate the smog laden skies, it wouldn’t be long though before colour and clarity were restored though, as once through the mess of factories scattered around the city limits, our road was taking us somewhere much cleaner.

Much cleaner, and much higher as well, as we began the climb to what would be the highest point of the trip, an ascent to an altitude of 3429m in the Qilian Mountain Range. It was the first time for a while that I could remember seeing blue sky, a sky that highlighted the snow-capped peaks of the taller parts of the range. It was breath-taking stuff, with plenty of crews snatching a few minutes for a photo opportunity, and plenty of navigators hanging out the windows filming as they went. The climb was a bit too much for car 27, suffering overheating problems, to the point they could go no further and needed recovering.

There was more climbing scheduled for the first regularity, a gravel ascent 108km and a couple of hours from the start of the day. The snow had actually blown onto the reg in places, offering the drivers a choice of hammering across the powder, or taking a muddy side track, Christopher Holland and Colin Clark opted for the latter and got stuck, not for the first time.

Post reg and it was onto a time control section, with a brisk run along the gravel tracks adjacent to the Jade River, complete with rickety bridges to cross. A few cars were pushing on here, including our resident tame racing driver, Christophe Bouchut. Some say he starts each day with 1000 press-ups, and that his middle name is Deborah, all we know is that if you get in his way on an STC he will keep his hand on the horn and harass you until you have been despatched. That was certainly the case for Swiss crew Elvis Fogal and Jean-Pierre Carles, when the mirrors of the Alfa filled up with the fast-moving Peugeot 504.

There was a splash of greenery after the STC, and even some civilisation as the midpoint of the day rolled around. This wouldn’t last long though, and as we approached the afternoons time control section the desert stretched out to the south of us, and above that loomed more distant mountains, with their 5500 metre peaks glistening white in the sunshine, as the cars ripped along an enjoyable regularity section. It was yet more sensational scenery, and a real privilege to be experiencing the drive. Sadly, not everyone was getting to experience it, with car 7 being the latest machine requiring a flat bed, the Chrysler 75 of Andrew Davies and Shaun Dixon having bust a piston in the six-cylinder motor. Another vintage machine was in trouble after the reg as well, the Bentley 4 ½ of Jonathan Turner and Nick English having cracked the chassis and also requiring a flatbed to complete their day.

For everyone else, a long drive to the remote MTC followed the final competition section, on smooth tarmac, all in the shadow of the mountains. It was a beautiful drive, after a day of tremendous scenery, though the day wasn’t done yet, with over 100km still to go to the hotel after the MTC. A drive that was as technical as it was long.