MG Jan Bul v1.0 - The Triple-M Register

drove the 29 miles to the next section, which was Cutliffe Lane. This
can be very slippery, loose and steep, but was not too bad this year. It
still stopped 26 of the cars, mostly those who were running later, which
indicates it got worse as the day went on.
Another 20 miles later we were waiting our turn to attempt Sutcombe.
Once again we had no real problem, although 21 cars did fail it. We
were soon at the top, queuing for a cup of tea and a piece of homemade
cake, which was being sold at one of the houses in aid of the
local church and village hall. It’s a very welcome break and it’s a good
chance for us to be able to help a community who put up with us once
a year.
Another 11 miles and we were at the unmanned holding control, where
we have to wait for a marshal on a motor bike to take us to the next
section, Darracott. The reason for the escort is to make sure we cause
minimum inconvenience to the local houses, and do not block the little
roads whilst waiting to attempt the section. 41 cars failed this section,
although again a lot of these had a very awkward restart on a big slab
of rock! Having completed the Leddon Farm Special Test, we drove 16
miles to Widemouth Bay holding check where, to the ladies delight,
were some toilets. We left this Control at one minute intervals, and
drove another 6 miles to Crackington. This section would be quite easy,
except that the local farmer tips 1000’s of litres of water on the top of
the section, which turns it into a deep rutted quagmire! When you leave
the start, all you see is a fairly steep lane running up the hill from the
stream you have just forded. It’s only when you get near the top that
you see the quagmire. Not surprisingly 36 cars failed this section.
Another 8 miles brought us to the Wilsey Down Hotel and an hour
break, with the choice of another breakfast or something bigger if
required.
Although we only had another five sections to attempt, they were all
quite difficult, and would stop many more competitors from gaining a
medal. The first of these was Warleggan, which is a very rocky section,
which if driven with too much enthusiasm would probably result in a
broken car. As usual there was a lot of grip and only one car failed this
section. Next came Hoskin Hill. Well that’s not quite true, because the
original section was badly damaged by tree felling gangs, and the
replacement hill was certainly not as difficult, only catching out 18 cars.
13 miles further on and, having completed another Special test, we
went on to the third from last hill, Bishops