TEXT: IVÁN AND CRISTINA / PHOTOS: SPAIN CLASSIC RAID
We introduce ourselves, we are Ivan Woven y Cristina Nestar and we have participated with a Fiat Panda 4 × 4 Sisley in the 5th day of the VII Spain Classic Raid held on Wednesday October 23, from Ciudad Rodrigo to Aveiro.
We played two stages, beautiful and intense. Valladolid was our stage initial, where we had mechanical problems in the gearbox and we only entered third gear. In this way, we carried out all the kilometers set in the stage until its end in Ciudad Rodrigo, where we had to access with the reverse gear activated to be able to enter the finish line.
Once we entered the finish line, we were an hour repairing the damage we suffered in the gearbox. Our hope was to be able to continue in the raid to be able to compete for the first time in the history of the rally a stage through Portuguese lands. We got it, the car worked.
ROAD TO PORTUGAL!
80 classic vehicles We were lucky enough to star in this stage, where a rainy morning made the first section difficult, with the vast majority of participants opting - on the recommendation of the organization - to go by road.
A few kilometers later, we had mechanical problems in the gearbox again, we lost two hours until we repaired the incident and we returned to the race in the city of Guarda (Portugal), enjoying the Serra da Estrela Natural Park located in the central mountainous massif, on a high plateau, where the landscape is characterized by rocks, crags, clay soil, eucalyptus trees, and small municipalities with great artistic heritage.
AVEIRO WAS ALREADY CLOSE!
We continued the stage until we came across a very deep puddle, we entered too fast and the consequence was the large amount of water that entered the engine and got our delco wet. We had to get off in the middle of the puddle to dry the delco, we could not turn on the panda, shortly after some colleagues towed us a few meters to be on firm ground and repair this anomaly.
We were able to get out of trouble thanks to a dry cloth and patience. We had to hit the road when we reached TC4 due to the shorter schedule in Portugal and the poor visibility that we already had.
We managed to get to Aveiro, where we were presented by the organization with some t-shirts and a trophy for participating. We have made great friends and met people very similar to us from all over the national territory.
Back in Palencia!
At home, encouraged to continue doing what we like, with the next edition already in mind and the car in the middle of repairs to return to Spain and neighboring countries on dirt roads, with the only help of a compass, a Road book and my «Pandita 4 × 4».
Thanks to the Spain Classic Raid for the great work done so that we can visualize these magnificent landscapes and, in particular, to my brother Óscar and to Classic Motors Club for helping me troubleshoot mechanical gearbox problems. Goodness! 😉
Do you want to read more about Spain Classic Raid? Click here!