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Three very different cars, a 1982 Volkswagen Scirocco, a 1961 Jaguar Mk2 3.8 and a 1965 Morris Mini Cooper S, finished SR6 tied at the top of the results sheet. It was a loop around Saint-Bonnet-le Froid (26.416km) contested in icy conditions, as it is often the case at this time of year in Haute-Loire. The road was very slippery and the safety average was applied, as in SR5. Behind the leading three, the 4th place went to the very consistent Alfa Giulia TI 1600, a 1965 car driven by Italy’s Giovanni Chiesa, with Tiziana Chiesa in the right seat. It was the third and penultimate stage of the day and it was almost fatal to Jean-Claude Andruet, due to a faulty battery on his Alpine-Renault. However, the winner of the 1973 edition managed to repair and to check at the control point for SR7. Phew!
Opening the day on Sunday, the Prefect of Ardèche, Mr. Thierry Devimeux, honored the Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique with his presence. With his wife and son aboard, the Prefect opened the road, one hour before the start of the competitors, aboard a magnificent Citroën Traction Avant. A fine proof of his involvement in the life of his department.
A venerable Renault R12 Gordini from 1972 made experience speak in the Burzet, Sunday, during a SR5 (30,297 km). A safety average had been imposed by the organizers, due to the very slippery conditions in this monument of the “Monte “. At the top of the timesheets, with as many penalty points as the R12 of Italy’s Massimo Canella and Vittorio Berzero, two other cars made their mark: the Peugeot 104 ZS of François Abrial and Michel Perin, as well as the Lancia Fulvia Coupé 1.3S of Switzerland’s Claudio Enz and Cristina Seeberger, who were already very efficient on Saturday. It was a beautiful stage in authentic winter conditions, as it often happens on the roads of Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique.
A famous chef started Sunday by winning SR4: Michel Chabran, entered with his elder son, Jules Chabran, in a 1979 BMW 323i. This happened between Saint-Sauveur-de-Montagut and Saint-Andéol-de-Vals, on a very long stage (39.979km). Michel Chabran had already won one stage of E-Rally Monte-Carlo, the electric version of the “Monte”. In this stage, he also had the satisfaction of beating three Porsches fair and square, including that of last year’s winners, Belgians Philippe and Antoine Cornet de Ways Ruart, as well as a… Zastava 1100 dating back to 1979 also, entered by a Polish couple, Stanislaw and Anna Postawka. It was just the start of a busy Day 1 of the Common Leg, with three more SRs scheduled to follow.
La Remise remains an essential stop during a Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique. Meeting again with the Jouanny family, especially Yves and Yvette, is always a moment of shared happiness for all rally enthusiasts. This year, for the 25th edition, almost 260 crews observed a gourmet stopover in Antraigues-sur-Volane, in the heart of Ardèche, for a delicious mix of apple pie and lively discussions with Yves, more than ever the master of the place.
Early Sunday, the Peugeot 104 ZS driven by Carlos Tavares, the CEO of the Stellantis group and an authentic petrolhead, broke down in the first stage, Le Moulinon/Antraigues (SR4). The front right transmission seemed out of order and it looked like game over, before the ritual stop planned at “La Remise”, the famous restaurant of the Jouanny family. However, a man living next to the stage had the same model in his garage, in very good condition. He provided the spare parts needed for an urgent fix and the white 104 started again, in SR5. The next goal on the agenda was to get safely back to Valence on Sunday night.
Due to the snow and ice in the climb to Col de Pennes, a safety speed average, lower than the one originally planned, was imposed on competitors in SR3 (16.13km) between Recoubeau- Jansac and Pennes-le-Sec. It was the third regularity stage of the 25th Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique and it was won by a 1975 Volvo 242, entered by Germany’s Norbert Drexler and Austria’s Christian Roessler, tied with the 1964 Sunbeam Tiger of a Belgian crew, Carlo Mylle and Steven Vyncke. The competitors then passed the Crest time control (CH3) and finally arrived within the scheduled times in Valence, on the famous Champ de Mars. It was the end of the Classification Leg with a Mini Cooper S in the lead of the overall standing, the same Mini that won SR2.
The serious part really starts on Sunday, with four legendary stages for Leg 1 of 3, in Ardèche and Haute-Loire. In his Alpine-Renault, half a century after his legendary 1973 win in Monaco, Jean-Claude Andruet will go back in time… notably at La Remise in Antraigues-sur-Volane where the local apple pie was once dedicated to him, before it became distributed by the Jouanny Family to all competitors!
The Austin Mini Cooper S driven by Giorgio Schon and navigated by Francesco Giammarino, one of the Torino entries, won the laurels in SR2 (15.44km) between Chaudon-Norante and Digne-les-Bains, on Saturday morning, before a short break on Place du Tampinet, in the heart of the Prefecture of Alpes de Haute-Provence. There were a few patches of black ice in SR1, but in famous Col du Corobin, very rarely used in winter, there was quite a lot of snow, especially in the descent to Digne; So that all crews had to watch out, and only one made a spectacular mistake. At the end of this stage, on equal penalty points with the Italian Mini, there were two Italian cars at the top of the results sheet: the 1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia TI 1600 entered by the Chiesa couple, Giovanni and Tiziana, already very well placed at the end of SR1, and a Lancia from Switzerland, the 1970 Fulvia Coupé 1.3S with Claudio Enz and Cristina Seeberger on board.
From E-Rally Monte-Carlo to Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique, there is only one technological step! Frederic Lanciaux and Nicolas Buhot, winners of the 2021 edition of E-Rally Monte-Carlo, have changed cars. They are embarked in an English racing green MG that is very different from their usual VW ID. It is also much noisier, so that Nicolas, the co-driver, must learn to raise his voice when he reads out the pace notes. For a first participation in a RMCH, the electric and eclectic crew does not sulk its pleasure!
Credit where honor is due, the 2022 winners of Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique were the best in the first Regularity Special (SR) of this 2023 edition, Saturday morning between Briançonnet and Ubraye (18.27 km). A stage used last week in WRC, but in reverse. There were 271 competitors classified at the end of SR1, but the leading duet was made up of Philippe and Antoine Cornet de Ways Ruart, in the same 1965 Porsche 911 that they drove to win the rally in February 2022. Behind the Belgian tandem, the closer rivals were another Porsche 911, coming from Germany and more recent (1982), a 1978 Opel Kadett GTE coming from Great Britain, and two Italian crews entered in a 1975 Lancia Stratos and a 1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia. Very promising…
