The Rally

Eligible cars are defined by the organizer, the Automobile Club de Monaco (ACM). In principle, they must be similar to cars that participated in the original Rallye Monte-Carlo back in the day, i.e. up to model year 1986. Upon entry, each car must be fully documented and verified in compliance with ACM regulations, and will be inspected again during scrutineering before starting permission is granted.

This year, approximately 250 cars will take part. They will start from Monte-Carlo, Torino, Barcelona, Reims, Bad Homburg and/or John O’Groats (Scotland), before gathering in Valence on February 2nd. After completing 18 special stages, the rally will finish in Monte-Carlo in the early hours of Saturday, February 7th.Depending on the starting city, the total distance will range between 2,038 and 3,544 km.

Sunday, February 1st / Monday, February 2nd

Starting off the ramp from 11:00 pm, we head towards Gap via St. André-les-Alpes and Selonnet. Hopefully, we’ll get a few hours of sleep before continuing through Laragne-Montéglin, Buis-les-Baronnies and Crest, ending the day in Valence no later than 2:30 pm on Monday, February 2nd.

The cars are then checked once more, officially registered, and fitted with an electronic tracking device before being parked overnight in Parc Fermé 1.

Tuesday, February 3rd

Today the pace quickens – things get fast and furious.

The first car starts at 7:00 am. As car no. 21, we’ll start 21 minutes later. Three mountain stages await east of Valence, including climbs over Col d’Echarasson (1,146 m a.s.l.) and Col de Tourniol. As always, altitude and weather are major challenges – conditions may range from full winter to early spring.

SR 1 is mainly about “getting rid of the cobwebs”, while SR 2 looks fairly straightforward. However, SR 3 includes 13 hairpins and pushes the average speed limit of 63 km/h. When catching up, we may not exceed the average speed by more than 10% – otherwise we’ll be heavily penalized. Consequently, there is no braking through the corners just to maintain speed.

Around noon we return to Valence for a short break, before heading out again 90 minutes later for three new stages. The day ends back in Valence around 6:00 pm, with 387 km completed.

Wednesday, February 4th

We set off again from Valence at 8:21 am for two new stages, this time west of the Rhône River.

SR 7 starts just outside the village of St-Pierreville and heads towards La Pervenche via Issamoulenc. It includes 12 hairpins and reaches a maximum altitude of 933 m a.s.l.

SR 8 starts at Lachamp-Raphaël and finishes in Burzet. It appears fairly straightforward with a few hairpins, but the start is at 1,360 m a.s.l., so anything can happen.

After completing these stages, we gather in Vals-les-Bains around 12:30 pm. With the first eight stages completed, the starting order is revised based on overall performance. When we head out again 90 minutes later, this new order will remain unchanged for the rest of the rally.

Two more stages follow. The first starts in Saint-Andéol-de-Vals. It doesn’t look too difficult on paper, but the low average speed suggests some surprises along the way. Ending at Col de Sarrasset, we then move on to the final stage of the day, SR 10, which is essentially a repeat of SR 7 – unless last-minute changes are announced (which often happens).

We return to Valence around 6:00 pm, with another 296 km completed.

Thursday, February 5th

Today’s route is slightly longer than yesterday’s, but faster.

We leave Valence around 8:30 am for three stages east and slightly south of the city.

SR 11 starts at Les Nonières and ends in Chichilianne after 14.4 km. This is a demanding stage: long, with seven hairpins, and reaching a maximum altitude of 1,402 m a.s.l.

SR 12 is shorter but starts at 1,036 m a.s.l. in Le Château, crosses Col de Carabes (1,269 m), and finishes in La Bâtie-des-Fonts at 891 m a.s.l. Road conditions may be unpredictable.

SR 13, starting at Col de Chamauche, is another serious challenge. We start the clock at 1,037 m a.s.l. and descend through the valley with 7–8 hairpins. On paper it looks manageable, but in reality it’s very hilly with tricky roads and should not be underestimated.

We return to Valence around 4:00 pm with 312 km completed. Early dinner tonight – our last evening in Valence.

Friday, February 6th

The long day – the longest of the entire rally.

First, we cover approximately 438 km to reach Monaco, followed by another 148 km of night stages in the mountains above Monte-Carlo.

On the way to Monaco, we complete three stages.SR 14 starts in Aucelon, goes over Le Devés, down into the valley, up to Col de Pennes (1,040 m a.s.l.), and then down to Barnave. Sixteen hairpins – and hopefully great fun.SR 15 starts in Bréziers (1,061 m a.s.l.), crosses Col des Garcines (1,250 m a.s.l.) and descends to Selonnet. At 13.4 km, it has relatively few hairpins but a high average speed of 65 km/h.SR 16 runs from Auzet to Esclangon (14.4 km). Not particularly technical, but fatigue starts to set in – and we know more night stages are still to come.

Before entering Monaco, we pass through La Turbie for the traditional coffee stop, then cruise into Monte-Carlo for scrutineering. We get a few hours of rest – but no real sleep. Adrenaline is high as we prepare for the final stages in the hills above Monte-Carlo. We check the car once more, drink more coffee, and try to keep spirits high.

We leave town around 9:30 pm, passing the casino and Café de Paris before disappearing into the dark backstreets. The final battle is on. The interval between cars is now just 30 seconds.

SR 17 starts in La Bollène-Vésubie: 15 km of narrow, steep and extremely demanding roads. Twelve hairpins, altitude ranging from 719 to 1,650 m a.s.l. With the defined average speed, it is almost impossible to stay on target – but we’ll try.

SR 18 runs from La Cabanette to Col de Braus, 13.6 km of pure challenge. Twenty-seven hairpins, starting at 1,376 m a.s.l., dropping to 1,007 m, climbing to 1,192 m and finishing at 994 m. Last year our brakes faded towards the end, but with upgraded brakes this time, we hope to be better prepared.

At this point, Terje and I will simply be happy to have made it this far – and we’ll be looking forward to crossing the finish line.

This is where the rally often turns upside down. There is no room for mistakes, yet many will be made. Winners become losers – and vice versa.

After completing the final two stages, we return to Monte-Carlo sometime between 1:00 and 2:00 am on Saturday morning. Exhausted, but grateful to have finished