Monte Carlo 2001 and WRC Season

[Junior]

Well Lads,
I may have been quite over the last while but with the new WRC Season you may be wondering who's who and what they've been up to, well have a look at the news section
http://www.eforecourt.com/news/news.htm for all the details

Monte Carlo
The uncertainty of the weather in the Alps is the biggest difficulty facing drivers. Stages are usually run in pairs so competitors can tackle the first of the group in gloomy conditions on wet asphalt. However, the next, perhaps on the other side of a mountain, can be dry but treacherously icy at low level, before turning to full snow as it climbs - a situation encapsulated by the famous Sisteron stage, tackled twice during the second leg.



These conditions make tyre selection incredibly difficult. In such rapidly changing conditions, there is frequently no such thing as 'the perfect tyre choice', drivers and engineers from Pirelli striving to find a compromise option which costs least time on sections in which the rubber proves unsuitable.



The situation is complicated as tyre selection must often be made two hours before drivers tackle the second test in a group, during which time conditions can change quickly. In such circumstances information on road and weather conditions obtained by team ice note crews is invaluable. Allowed to drive the stages up to two hours before the start the ice crews relay by radio details of the latest conditions to the drivers to assist with tyre choice.



Rally Route


The most compact Monte Carlo Rally ever, with just 15 stages (seven of which are repeated) and each overnight halt back in the Principality, awaits the restricted 60-car entry. After a ceremonial start outside Monte Carlo's famous casino on Thursday evening, the next day's leg, the longest, heads to the mountains for six stages based around St Andre-les-Alpes. Leg 2 takes competitors back to the same area for five more stages, the majority slightly further north around Digne-les-Bains, including a double run over the feared Sisteron, at almost 37km the longest and toughest stage of the rally. The final day is based around Sospel, just north of Monte Carlo, during which drivers will twice tackle the famous Col de Turini section. Drivers face 392.18km of competition in a total route of 1745.48km.

[WhipLash]

I was watching Eurosport last night and saw the advertisement for the Monte Carlo rally. The venue will certainly be of interest to me, and I'll keenly be watching it over the weekend, whenever I get the time.

Junior, just as a matter of interest, apart from start at the infamous Casino Square (which was dripping with an unimaginable level of wealthy people during the F1 GP), does the WRC use any of the tarmac circuit that the F1 event uses?

[Junior]

Well Whip,
It's a question I wa never asked before so I consulted the Stage Maps and besides what the teams use as their base in Monte Carlo and the Start Finish, no I don't think any of the F1 track is used ...

And the Schedule on Eurosport is

19/1
22:00 First Leg
0:15 FIA World Rally Championship in Monte Carlo

20/1
22:00 Second Leg
0:15 FIA World Rally Championship in Monte Carlo

21/1
22:00 Third Leg
0:45 FIA World Rally Championship in Monte Carlo

22/1
22:15 FIA World Rally Championship in Monte Carlo

[Junior]

The shakedown for the Monte Carlo rally, starting on Friday morning, was hit by heavy snow, engulfing the French Alps, creating highly treacherous conditions ahead of the 2001 World Championship opener. Hyundai’s Pierro Liatti and Subaru’s Richard Burns were both involved in slight accidents. Burns was halted for a few minutes when he hit a van, but Liatti was less fortunate, clipping a wall, smashing a wheel before hitting a tree.

The damage to Burn’s car was minor in comparison to Liatti’s and was able to continue. Unfortunately for Liatti it was the first time he had taken the Hyundai Accent out in such conditions and is unsure whether the car will be ready in time for the start of the rally tomorrow morning.

The shakedown near Sospel then found the snow turning to slush as the temperatures rose, thus making it impossible to compare shakedown times. Most tyres stuck to ultra-narrow snow tyres, while some chose to try slightly wider tyres, one of these was Pierro Liatti himself, he may now be ruing that decision.


Peugeot drivers Gilles Panizzi and Marcus Gronholm had mixed opinions of the forthcoming rally. Panizzi described the snow as “fantastic – a real Monte Carlo Rally, our only problem will be tyre choice. That is in fact my main concern,” Gronholm was less enthusiastic, stating: "It's not so nice. I prefer dry conditions, the car feels good. Compared to the RAC, there is nothing different."

Ford’s Francois Delecour has one of the best records on the Monte Carlo Rally, finishing 10 of his 12 attempts, but he remains cautious: “The only sore point is the fact that I still need to understand how the Pirellis work. I'm not totally at one with the rubber at our disposal just yet. "I think everybody can win when it is like this. There will be many crashes," he added. "The car is good. I am surprised about the engine. Handling is very similar to the Peugeot, very easy."

Tommi Makinen was in a way happy to see the snow, the Finnish driver is very comfortable in these conditions and will be looking for a good start to his year. “Whatever the conditions, I'm okay,” said the Mitsubishi driver. “I'm feeling confident and happy with the improvements we've made to the car. I can sincerely say that we have a very good chance of coming out on top this weekend.”

"It's been nice during the recce. It's not so nice any more, but this is normal weather for the Monte Carlo Rally and it makes things a lot more difficult, but it's the same for everybody," Subaru man Burns said.