Synopsis
Gather together 50 classic rally cars and another 50 4x4s in Rio de Janeiro and send them off on a seven-week rally through the Andes, Atacama Desert, Tierra del Fuego and Patagonia and you are sure to have a few adventures. Vic Quayle and his wife Pam took their 4x4 over to South America to have the trip of a lifetime. They were not disappointed. Organized by the Historic Endurance Rally Organisation (HERO) the event was going to be rough and tough from the outset. It would follow in the footsteps of the famous London - Mexico World Cup Rally in 1970 which was won by Hannu Mikkola in a Ford Escort. John Brown, top endurance rally organizer, warned the entrants of the dangers to be encountered: the remoteness of the terrain and altitude sickness - participants would be going up to 16,500 feet and spending a great deal of time at over 12,000 feet. But the challenge was not to be missed by the 300-strong crew in 100 cars that ventured out from the start in October 2001. This was a rally of superlatives. One of the longest ever held, it traversed the highest road in the western world; accompanied the world's highest railway line; crossed the world's driest desert, the Atacama; and visited the world's southernmost ever Rally Control on Tierra del Fuego. The crews travelled through six countries: Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, before returning to Brazil and the finish in Rio de Janeiro and with all manner of adventures along the route.
From the Back Cover
Vic Quayle describes himself as a club rally man and has tackled many events in the United Kingdom over many years.
In 1994 he broke a trans-Europe world record by driving from southern Spain to Nordkapp at the top end of Norway in record time.
As former President of Guildford Lions Club he linked the Inca Trail to fund raising for various charities and also took the opportunity to meet fellow members of Lions Clubs International when in South America.
Back in the United Kingdom Lions Clubs organise a Braille Rally for blind navigators. Vic has won the event twice with different navigators, accompanied in the car by their guide dogs!
His wife Pam navigated on many rallies with Vic and spent most of the trip in the passenger seat with the road book, maps and video camera.
