The Yacht Club des Avoins de la Route, France (YCAR) invite owners of Austin Sevens to join them for the first YCAR Trial on 1-3 March 2019 at Echillais, Charente-Maritime, France. The programme is arrive on Friday for introductions and dinner; Saturday morning trials driving on public roads, by-ways and off-road, lunch, and resume trialling, dinner. Sunday morning - Ardillauds demonstration hill climb (helmets required) followed by lunch and depart!
Igor is a well-known commentator at French events, and the man behind YCAR. There is a YCAR Facebook page and the followers are fascinated by the way Austins et al are shown on YouTube/Facebook being trialled over hills and hollows. Echillais is near La Rochelle.
I might well be interested in doing this trial, but it would be more fun if we can get several cars to enter and go down together?
Living in Chichester this is actually closer to me than doing the VSCC Lakeland trial, which we happily do every year (400 miles each way!).
I've googled the Gite and event and it does look typically French - Aperitifs, lunches and dinners are all in the ticket price!
Is anybody else out there up for a pre-Brexit jolly?
This is the kind of event I enjoy but even though I live in France it is a very long way from where I am. I would have a hell of a journey to get there in a day in the RP so I guess I'll have to pass.
Well Reckless, I have to admit that I had not even considered driving my Chummy down there!
It would be a high speed belt down in a modern plus trailer from the overnight boat I reckon.
France is a relatively easy country to drive across, providing you want to go North-South or South-North unless you live in the "Schnord".
I once had to drive up to the Charente with a pal of mine to collect a Camping-Car he'd bought and even in a modern it took the best part of 8 hours, and that included some motorway driving. I looked at the possible route to this event and it works out at about 580km from here give or take, which is about 360 miles. I doubt if I could do that in a day so I'd need an overnight stop somewhere. I have done 280 miles in a day once, but that took me 10 hours (Sheffield to Dover) and I don't fancy ever doing it again!
A friend of ours comes to France every year for holidays and he stays at Tedi on the coast just south of Bordeaux. One year he came across to see us and decided to take the scenic route (in a MGF). It took him 10 hours. Since then he's always gone the long way round using the motorway...you live and learn!
I would still be looking at a LONG hard drag with a modern & trailer to get there, so I'll have to give it a miss.
Like Bob I'm thinking about going. Definitely a trailer-job as we would go from Newhaven or Dover and there is also the small matter of getting our trials chummy registered with the DVLA and adding enough electrics to pass muster on the road sections of the trial.
25-11-2018, 05:19 PM (This post was last modified: 25-11-2018, 05:21 PM by Reckless Rat.)
There is no need to fit any lamps to your Chummy providing you only use it in daylight hours. This is specifically catered for in the Con & Use regulations, and if it's legal in the UK then it's OK for France for a visiting vehicle.
25-11-2018, 11:50 PM (This post was last modified: 26-11-2018, 02:20 PM by David.H.
Edit Reason: update
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(25-11-2018, 01:35 PM)Barry Wrote: Like Bob I'm thinking about going. Definitely a trailer-job as we would go from Newhaven or Dover and there is also the small matter of getting our trials chummy registered with the DVLA and adding enough electrics to pass muster on the road sections of the trial.
If you go through the hassle of registering with DVLA & getting them to agree the age (use the club), you then will not need an MOT so you can legally tax the car as long as you have it insured for the road. They will probably send someone to look at the car to see it exists, but in my experience they are quite friendly (and have seen it all before!)
You will get a V5 & will have appeared on the Radar! I know of a rolling chassis (with engine) that has most of a body just sitting on the frame & it is taxed for the road!
It won't be legal to drive as Reckless points out, but it is taxed!
(25-11-2018, 05:19 PM)Reckless Rat Wrote: There is no need to fit any lamps to your Chummy providing you only use it in daylight hours. This is specifically catered for in the Con & Use regulations, and if it's legal in the UK then it's OK for France for a visiting vehicle.
I was thinking that Stop lights might be handy, possibly indicators (and not forgetting spare lightbulbs, gilet jaune and breathalysers). I have bicycle LED lights for night-time
