Day by Day

Alain Lopes has just communicated the itinerary of the 2005 Liege Rome Liege to us. We will not mention the position of the secret regularity tests or the time controls, but the total number of controls throughout the itinerary is impressive.

Monday June 20 : Bormio (Italy) STELVIO - STELVIO

The day of Monday 20 June will be reserved for the scrutineering and administrative checks. You will receive the exact information about how to reach Bormio in good time, together with the progress of the day’s schedule. At the beginning of the evening, all the crews make their way to the top of the Stelvio Pass, which is 2,758 metres at its highest point, for the great start of the Rally.

“ Whoever has never experienced a regularity test involving driving through the Stelvio pass in a vintage or classic car has never experienced anything “.
Enough said! The hostilities have begun.

It is now up to you to do credit to your illustrious predecessors and give the best of yourselves in order to record this 90-kilometre long, night-time loop on your honours list. Back to Bormio for the night, where you find your hotels that you left a few hours before.

Tuesday June 21 : BORMIO - SAN MARTINO di Castrozza

This day could be shown like a cycling stage of the Tour de France, with a graphic projection of the height of the mountain passes where the race crosses: 1,896 m, 1,943 m, 2,042 m, 1,970 m ... That’s right, you’ve twigged it:
“ Higher and higher “
will be the motto for Tuesday June 21.

Those successive climbs would be nothing if there were not those time controls to be passed and, above all, those regularity tests, which are constantly going to remind you that stopwatch, road book and navigation are reflected in the final rankings. Of course, altitude also means wonderful landscapes, where the fresh mountain air will whet your appetite. So you’ll need a healthy and tasty lunch to regain physical strength and the enchanting, green setting of the Garda Lake is just the place for a midday meal break.

The arrival of the end of stage will be judged in San Martino di Castrozza. This villaggio italiano, perched between the Rolle Pass and the Duran Pass, is very familiar with motoring competition since the San Martino Rally is organised there, every year. The region is therefore won over to the cause of the automobile and even more so to the vintage and classic cars of the Liege Rome Liege Rally and the caravan that follows in its wake.

Wednesday June 22 : SAN MARTINO di Castrozza - KRANJSKA GORA

This day is going to lead us mainly through the Eastern Alps and Julian Alps to rejoin Kranjska Gora, in Slovenia. So there we are in the heart of the Dolomites. Even if we cross through lower-altitude passes, the wilder and more formidable appearance of these mountains cannot fail to catch our eye.

In the course of the morning, the road book will take you through what historians readily call the Trentino Dolomites and more specifically through the Longarone region.

Italy is also the country of joy and good cooking. For the sidelights on history, this region, between the Val di Zoldo and the magnificent Val Fiorentina, was the birthplace of the master ice-cream makers, a distinctly Italian invention par excellence.

The Rally will cross into Slovenia by the Stupizza – Kobarid road. As we said, the records showed that some of those passes had no longer been taken by the Rally since 1956 at the time of its first foray into Yugoslavia. We therefore just had to rediscover those ridges for the 75th anniversary.

Thursday June 23 : KRANJSKA GORA - PORTOROSE (Slovenia)

Is Slovenia in the Balkans? It’s a question that seems to divide thinking people. Some people base their arguments on historical facts to affirm that Slovenia forms part of the Balkan countries, whereas others, with maps to back up what they say, situate the country between Alpine and Danubian Europe and the Balkans. The Liege Rome Liege Rally is not there to argue on the subject, but rather to benefit and make all its contenders benefit from the riches that the country has to offer.

Since 1991, the Slovenians have a democratic state that is brilliantly adapting to freedom and the market economy. Since 2004, they are part of the European Union That means that a special effort has been made for tourism, but also for means of transport and the road network. The drive through small villages in the region of the Triglavski Narodni Park clearly shows that Slovenia is only slightly behind its nearby neighbour, Italy.

The arrival of the Rally will take place in a typical fishing village, Piran. The town will be dressed up in its finest to welcome its distinguished guests as is only right and proper, we are talking of your classic cars, of course. The crews will not be forgotten for all that and they will be able to taste the local specialties. The hotel, located in Portoroze, i.e. 2 kilometres from Piran, will be a very easy place to load the cars on the lorries for crews who have chosen that option.

The final Prizegiving Gala will take place on a private beach, by the light of a fireworks display arranged in honour of the Rally’s Jubilee and its valorous competitors.