16 hour engine change.

As we are now racing outside of Europe, the Truckies do not have to drive their trucks and move the cars and equipment. But logistical problems still happen and thankfully, it is a problem for the WTCC freight forwarders, not the Truckies.
All of the cars and team equipment were loaded into 24 containers, at Termas de Rio Hondo, and driven to Ezeiza airport in Buenos Aires. Once everything had arrived, the airport staff should have started to load the cars and equipment onto the special airfreight pallets. The only problem was that they had no experience of handling this sort of freight. It was time for the WTCC logistics team of DHL and Weitracon to show them what to do. To avoid damaging the wheels of the flight cases, the plan was to cut wooden blocks and rest the cases on these so that the wheels are up in the air. A few problems occurred with personal safety insurance for everyone who was working with wood cutting saws and driving forklifts, but once these were resolved, it was all systems go !!

After 3 days of hard work, the first plane was ready to be loaded and was ready to depart on the Tuesday evening at 2300 hours.
The next plane was due to leave on Wednesday evening but as it flew into the airport, they had an engine failure and the plane landed on only 3 engines.
Once the plane had landed, aircraft mechanics started looking for the cause of the problem. They noticed that the engine oil capacity was low so they put more oil in. An attempt was made to start the engine but now they could see that a bearing had failed and the engine and the turbine fans were covered in oil. The aircraft mechanic was in contact with the airplane company in the USA, via his mobile phone, and a decision was made that the engine would need to be replaced.
It was now 0400 hours on the Thursday morning. They could fly the aircraft, on 3 engines, back to the USA, or they could get another engine and replace it in Buenos Aires. Finally, a chief mechanic and a spare engine arrived on Friday morning from Miami,USA. His job was to supervise the 8 Argentinian, aircraft mechanics whilst they spent the next 16 hours replacing the engine.
Eventually, the aircraft was repaired, loaded up and took off for San Francisco on the Saturday.

Once the cars and equipment have cleared US customs, its a 2 hour drive to the race track at Sonoma and the WTCC show will continue. The reason why I write this blog is to highlight the logistics as we move around the race tracks of the world and to show you what a complicated job it can be. This little chapter in the WTCC calender is a perfect example.

Question time with Yvan.

As we are no longer driving the trucks to the WTCC races, it can be a little bit difficult to try and keep my blog interesting. This year, I have decided to try to include something new.
A couple of the drivers do have experience of trucks. Alex MacDowell is preparing to take his truck licence and also has sponsorship from ECM. And a man who already has a truck licence, Yvan Muller, who has sponsorship from TRANSPORTS TYM. I used my Truckie charm to ask Yvan a few questions related to trucks and here are his answers.

Yvan,s race helmet with Transports TYM graphic.

RT/  How old were you when you took your truck test and did you complete it at your first attempt? 
Is your truck licence still valid or has it expired? 
In the UK at aged 45, you have to take a medical every 5 years after that, is it the same in France?

YM/  I got my licence at the first attempt. I was 18 when I took the 19 tonnes licence and  21 when I took the big truck licence and I can drive a truck when I need to. In France, you have to take a medical every 5 years from age 21. When you reach 60, you then take a medical every 3 years.

  
RT/  When was the last time you drove a big truck on the road and do you ever help out at the family truck business, Transports TYM?

YM/  Last time I drove a truck was in April  when I went to Nogaro, France for the first race of the 2013 season with Yvan Muller Racing. 

Unfortunately, I am too busy and I do not have time to drive for TYM Transport.

RT/  Have you ever driven a race truck and trailer for one of the teams you have raced for? Which team and when?

YM/  When I was driving for Triple Eight Racing in the UK, I drove the race team truck once from the UK to Ireland, but that was a long time ago.

RT/  Have you ever had an accident in a truck?

YM/  No, never. 

RT/  Do you agree with the 90 KMH speed limit for trucks on the Autoroutes and motorways?

YM/  Yes. I think 90 kmh is fast enough for a big truck. 

RT/  Reversing a truck and trailer is…     
A/ Easy 
B/ Difficult
C/ It is part of our job, so we should shut up and just do it.

YM/  I think it is Easy, I was born to drive a truck ...

RT/  Have you ever had chance to drive a proper racing truck around a circuit? 

Can you describe it to me?

YM/  Yes. I drove a DAF racing truck at Jarama, Spain. That was nice. After the test day, the team wanted me to sign a contract because my performance was good. But I was with BMW at the time with their touring car. That was in 1995.

RT/  How important to you and other drivers is the overall appearance of the team race trucks and how do you think the race truck and trailer gives a message to the sponsors and fans? 
YM/  The Truckie is very important because he is in charge of the cars and all the equipment, between the workshop and the circuits. The truck is large and very visible and represents the team and the sponsors. It should be in very good condition and be clean and presentable.

Well, I hope that you find my little interview interesting and different from the normal questions that the drivers are asked. Thanks to Yvan for taking time to help me with this and I look forward to bringing you the latest Truckie news from Sonoma in September.

It,s a Long Way..........to Argentina.

The main talking point between the Truckies and the other team members has been the travelling time. Almost everybody has been in various airports and airplanes for over 30 hours. The race track certainly produced some interesting racing but we have spent alot of money getting here. Over 30 containers have arrived by ship to Buenos Aires, then a 1400 km overland journey to arrive at Termas Do Rio Hondo.

The teams have been working under tents in temperatures ranging from 5-25 degrees Celsius which has not been nice and everything has been covered in dust which has been blown in by the wind from the surrounding desert.

THE JOYS AND GLAMOUR OF MOTORSPORT !!!!

And now the race is over, it is time to pack everything away again so that we can race in Sonoma, USA. We do have a problem due to the fact that there is not enough time to send the containers using a ship. So all of the cars and equipment will be sent using air freight. This is a very expensive way to get to the next race but we have no option. The Argentina race was a bit of a late addition to the race calender and by coming here, we have to deal with this situation.

Zengo wait for their container to be opened.

Bamboo car will need some repair work in USA

The Panta Fuel container receives some attention.

JAS Honda equipment loaded on Argentine truck

A very cheap but beautifully hand painted sign

The Countdown to Argentina

Continuing to load the containers, in the 30 degree heat of Portugal, was hard work for all the teams and the other personnel who were involved. The container ship left the port of Sines on 5th July and is due to arrive in Argentina on the 20th July.

DHL checking the containers on the train.

The short journey to the port was completed by train due to strike action in Portugal. This logistical headache was solved by DHL and Weitracon who are handling all of the freight solutions which the WTCC continues to demand. The decision to squeeze a race into the WTCC calendar has put so much extra financial demand on all of the teams and it also means that the cars and equipment will need to be sent by air and not sea freight, for it all to arrive in time for the race at Sonoma, USA.

Unfortunately for the STR team, they will miss the race in Argentina due to yet more damage to Tom Boardmans car. This has forced them to return to the UK for repairs and as I write this, they have successfully completed this. They will now send their car and equipment by sea freight and this will be taken to the container port of Antwerp next week.

                                                                                                 photo:T Boardman

Roal loading in Portugal.

Zengo in Portugal

Bamboo container is ready to be closed.

                                                                                                        photo:weitracon

                                                                                                                                                                                               photo:zengo

Things to do after Porto.

STR and All Inkl trucks on monday morning.

How do the teams get all of their cars and equipment to the next race in Argentina? As I walked around the paddock on the monday, after the race, many of the teams were scratching their heads and wandering what to do first. Some of the cars were having extensive bodywork repairs before they are ready to be shipped. And trucks were in the pitlane being loaded with boxes and crates before they are driven the short distance to a large loading area near the airport in Porto. This massive logistical task is once again being expertly managed by Wietracon and DHL. A mixture of containers are being transported to the ships by road and railway and even aircraft are being used to ensure that everything will be ready for us when we get to Argentina.

Truck being loaded before it drives towards the airport

Unfortunately, the tarmac in the paddock area was not suitable for using heavy cranes to take the containers off the trucks and put them on the ground. This would have been so much easier for the teams but they do not want to risk damaging the tarmac. I am no expert on this subject but myself and other team members were convinced that loading in the paddock area was possible. But this is what we have to deal with so we cannot change the situation.

Some bodywork needs repairing!

Our loading has now been completed and we are on our way back home. I will keep you updated on the logistics when it is all completed and I have been sent some more information and pictures

Sorry, Mr Policeman.

What could be inside this race truck?

The WTCC Truckies have driven down to Porto but it seems that a few of us have broken the law. Firstly, there is the subject of paying road tax for the trucks. Some roads in Portugal have always had toll booths. When you are driving on the motorways, you arrive at a toll booth and you pay money for the section of motorway that you have just driven on. A perfectly good way to do things. Two years ago, they decided that they would impose a tax on foreign trucks on ALL of the motorways, but they did not build more toll booth collection points on the motorways. So how do we know that we must buy tax and where do we buy it from??

It is a new Chevrolet for Tuenti Racing.

The Portuguese website for the toll system was only available in Portuguese language in 2011. That makes it very difficult for a foreigner to understand. Last year, they introduced a gantry system, above the motorway, with cameras and this records your journey as you drive. But nobody was sure how you could pay for the road tax. Even the Portuguese were confused.
In 2013, they have finally implemented a mixture of toll booths and electronic gantries and made it easier for a foreign truck to pay the tax.
NOW.........They seem to be using the computerised records for the last 2 years to try and get back the money that we should have paid but did not know how. CRAZY.
Some of the Truckies who have been stopped by the Police and have paid a small amount of money but other Truckies have been asked to pay over 1000 Euros. THAT IS A LOT OF MONEY AND IS FAR MORE THAN WE WOULD HAVE PAID IN ROAD TAX.
The system is a mess.
We all accept that if a law says we must pay for driving on a motorway in Portugal, that is not a problem. However, to try and extort money from foreign trucks when Portugal has made it so difficult to understand when and how we should pay is madness.
Today, at the circuit, it has been so hot and with temperatures at over 30 degrees Celsius, all of the teams have been sweating and avoiding sunburn. The race trucks have arrived in Porto, fully loaded, as we have to put everything in containers on Monday, ready for the next race in Argentina. More work, sweat and logistical problems are sure to follow!

Unfortunately, they do not arrive until Saturday :-(

Where has all my air gone?

It was too good to last. After all of the tyre problems that various teams have suffered this season, now it is my turn. We are on our way to Porto. The trailer is fully loaded with everything that we need in Portugal and everything that we have to put in the containers, ready for the races in Argentina, USA, etc, etc.
The sun has been merciless all day and with the temperature at 30 degrees Celsius, our air conditioned truck has been a luxury. But with 155km of driving before we reach Porto, one of our trailer tyres develops a puncture. A large piece of wood has gone into the sidewall of the tyre. It has not caused the tyre to deflate rapidly but the air is disappearing fast and all we can do is stop. Thankfully, the tyre has not shredded and damaged the trailer. VERY LUCKY.
We find a tyre company but they are 100km from us and we have to wait 4 hours before they arrive with a replacement. With the trailer carrying so much weight, we struggle to jack it up enough to allow the old tyre to be manoeuvred out and the new one put on.
A big thank you to AutoSueco(Minho,Braga) for their help with fixing our problem.
Tomorrow we will continue our journey to Porto and I will bring you the latest news from the WTCC Truckies.

Last comment on WTCC Moscow from the Russians.

M9 Highway, Russia.

 Just a last update concerning the journey back. Here is a quote from a Russian about his own countries race.

"We were first to arrive into Russia and we are the last WTCC trucks to leave. Moscow Raceway is a very nice circuit. But everything around disappoints. I hope no Russia in 2014 calendar. Why customs procedure takes 30 minutes for 2 trucks in Latvia and 9 hours in Russia?? Life is too short to waste time on the customs!"

These pictures show the last of the race trucks to leave Moscow. They were accompanied by 7 of the trucks who carry all of the hospitality equipment. One of the trucks has had big problems as you can see. And all caused by the poor condition of the roads. It has been an expensive race for all of the teams and the support crews. I know that I speak for all of us when I say that we are glad to be home. Big thank you to Max for these pictures.

The last trucks at Moscow Raceway.

Damage to a hospitality truck.

Lada arrive at the Latvian border.

WTCC Moscow Part 4. Conclusion and photo special.

M20 Road near Ostrov

13th June, 0730 hours, Travemunde, Germany. Our ferry boat has arrived from Latvia and we can be happy that our long journey to Moscow and back again is nearly over. We have a 20 hour drive before we can finally get home. But at least we know that we will have nice roads to drive on, not like the roads in Russia. The severe climate of Russia makes road conditions extremely hazardous. Everything depends on the time of the year. In autumn and winter the roads are severely damaged by rains, snow and frost. In spring they are being repaired. And summer is the only time of the year when their quality improves to some extent. However, roads create a constant problem in Russia and make driving a truck basically a stressful experience. Financing of Russian roads is pretty poor too and the Russians that I spoke to told me about the widespread corruption amongst the road construction companies.

The Sunday evening, after the race, and we are amongst the first group of trucks to leave Moscow Raceway. This race track has very good facilities and it is like an oasis amongst the countryside around it. There are no hotels close to the racetrack and some teams have had to travel 100km, every day, to come to work. The security to get into the track is a little daunting for us Westerners. Metal detectors, security and police personnel and bag searches. But we are leaving all of this behind as we drive away into the evening sunshine. We drive for 4 hours and when darkness descends, it is time to stop as we can no longer drive see the holes in the roads. It would be nice to get out of the trucks and have a chat with the other Truckies but the mosquitoes are relentless and there are lots of them. Despite using mosquito repellent, they still want to eat us. I have never encountered so many mosquitoes and I have travelled to alot of different countries. The next morning, we drive again and arrive at the Russian border at 1300 hours. Our agent is waiting for us. I ask for some identification as I do not know who he is. He was meant to help us when we arrived in Russia but he seems to have upset the Russian customs officers and they wold not allow him in. Fortunately he is here today. I was expecting a queue of trucks at the border and the agent was going to help us to the front of the queue. There was not another truck in sight so we could proceed into the customs area. We are issued with a piece of paper and this is given a signature and a rubber stamp as we complete each section of the customs process. When we finally leave Russia, this piece of paper has 9 different signatures and stamps on it. CRAZY.
After waiting for 2 hours, it is time to go to the x-ray scanner with the truck. I am first in but then when they look for my paperwork, they seem to have lost it. I wait 30 minutes before it is found and then I can go back to the parking area and more waiting. The mosquitoes are everywhere but when the rain starts to fall, we can get wet but avoid being bitten. More waiting and after 11 hours, we can finally leave Russia and enter the Latvian customs. It has taken us longer to complete the customs process with our agent than when we had to do everything ourselves when we came into Russia.
Once again, CRAZY.
On the Latvia side, we experienced no delays and we are all done in less than an hour. As all the teams are European(except Lada), and Latvia is an EU country, the paperwork takes only a fraction of the time. A few of us did meet a Latvian customs official who was trying to make us pay "black" money for some really stupid rules that he seemed to suggest that we had broken. But we refused to pay and none of the other Latvian customs officers wanted to help him in this corrupt process.
I still cannot understand why we the race organisers cannot help us more with these customs processes. Morocco and Russia invite the teams to come and race and entertain their people. Money is made and this helps their economies. Maybe WTCC is not as important as Formula 1 or the Olympic games which will be held at Sochi in 2014, but we all help the Russian economy and because of that, we deserve to be treated a little better and given an easier time when we enter the country.

It has cost many thousands of Euros to travel to this event but I know that next year, we will do some things differently to ensure a smoother passage through customs and try to avoid the bad roads. As I write this, there are still some teams who chose to drive back through Lithuania, Poland and then to their factories in Spain and  Italy. I have received no emails regarding any problems that they may have encountered on their homeward journey so I hope that "no news is good news". I think that this trip has proven the Truckies abilities and skills to drive the trucks safely. The fact that we did not have any damage to the cars or equipment in the trucks proves that we can secure the loads that we carry. And the fact that we only had a few punctures, despite the terrible road conditions, proves our driving skills.
I will leave you with some pictures of our travels.

The Riga TV and Radio Tower.

Trucks arrive at the meeting point in Latvia.

Russian customs inspect an All Inkl truck.

On the weighbridge at Russia border.

Roadworks and trucks means we have to stop.

Wiechers team setting up in Moscow.

Yokohama start to fit the tyres.

Seat team member prepares the front grille.

A picture of Lenin at a truck stop, 200km from Moscow.

Russian roads claim another victim !

RML truck an the way to Liepaja, Latvia.

Yokohama truck waits to drive onto the lift on the ferry boat.

Campos truck in Latvia.

Waiting drive to the x-ray scanner at the Russian border.

More roadworks.

Time for a cup of tea in Latvia.

Somewhere near Riga,Latvia.

Bamboo truck arrives at Moscow Raceway.

Cows on the road near Rzhev.