Shynsy

I tend to use tom-tom go on the phone. You can pay for just one month and it doesn't need network and the interface is clearer than Google maps. It also calculates your average speed in average speed check zones. 

Have also used magnetic sheets. We now have a nice collection in rbrr stickers on the side of our fridge much to my wifes annoyance .. this year i have decided to just use some neodynium magnets to hold the stickers. 
tim

2 hours ago, Mike North said:

Howard

Hi, we talked at Gaydon, good to meet you 

Just downloaded the GPX files on WhatsApp and uploaded to TomTom My Drive, updated my TomTom (speed cameras/ 20mph Wales?) and the files synchronised. Opened the routes, all perfect and ready for the RBRR. Thank you 

Snap.. did exactly the same.. worked really easily

7 minutes ago, JohnD said:

Gosh, Tim, I have exactly the same problem!  Left me incommunicado on my 'tour de France' this summer.       But the phone is well charged on a domestic socket.   Just blow out the phone socket with an air line?   Or a more elaborate method?

John

My phone has a USBc socket, it's a Samsung. I ended up using a needle to dig gently away at the socket. Lots of fluff came off. 

Tim

Hi All,

One extra thing I have just remembered is to be sure that your phone charger actually charges your phone.. I noticed recently that mine would keep the phone at whatever % charge it was at meaning it was not able to top up the charge.. This is fine in normal use,  but 48 hours solid use might have been tricky.. In the the end the solution was simple, clean the socket on the phone. It was full of fluff meaning the connection wasnt secure and charging defaulted to a low amp charge mode.

So check your charger (and your phone!)

Tim

So I've now completed 4 RBRRs 2 in my TR6 and 2 in my friend Simon's Stag. I have also prepared a 2500TC for my uncle and cousins to use in 2021.

I first came to the event in 2014 because my friend Simon had a Stag, was a member of CT and really wanted to do the event and needed a co-driver. We had taken his car to Classic Le Mans before and it seemed like a good idea (doesn't it always!). We rocked up to the Plough and was amazed by the number of cars (I am not sure any more could be fitted into what is quite a small car park). The run went surprisingly smoothly until we arrived at Gledrid services, at which point Simon head an worring rattle from the timing chains in the V8. Amazingly, in the car park was a chap who rebuilt Stag V8s for a living and we got him to have a listen. His prognosis was stretched chains.. not good.. However it happened that Gledrid was the stop closest to Simon's home so we slowly and carefully drove the car back home, had a brandy and went to bed..

Not daunted (in fact we now felt we had unfinished business) we committed to having another go in 2016. I helped Simon replace the stretched chains and in 2 years we were back at the start of the RBRR. This time everything worked beautifully. The car drove fabulously with only a random electrical issue which meant all the interior lights would turn on randomly in the middle of the night (quite off putting!). to mar perfection.

My third RBRR 2018 meant I moved to another car. This time my own TR6, and a different co-driver, my sister (who wanted to do it to celebrate her 40th birthday). We were also joined by my uncle Bryan and cousin Paul who attempted it in their TR4A. This turned out to be an epic trip for them, top down, and Bryan was 80 yo and stay awake for 48 hours diligently reading the map when he wasn't driving! For us the trip generally went well, the car has a supercharger and it drove very well.. We also had a hard top with webasto roof which I think my uncle thought was cheating!. We were not without technical issues however.  A random/worrying temperature fluctuation was traced to the oil cooler stat switching in and out. The shroud around the steering column sheared meaning the stalks turned with the steering unless you held on to them, the throttle cable snapped near stevenage on the last leg and we were approached by a spooky farmer who we don't think had anything on under his overalls and seemed interested in getting aquainted with my sister, and the gearbox began to lunch itself (dodgy rebuilt and supercharger torque not helping). We did however get home safe and sound.

My most recent RBRR was a return of the TR6 and sister combo (she said "never again" directly after the 2018 event but oddly asked to be considered as co-driver for 2020(21)... RBRR is adictive... This time with the issues sorted (I hoped). Uncle Bryan and cousin Paul also returned although Bryan was dealing with terminal bowel cancer so felt he couldn't do the TR4A again. Undaunted I offered to provide a 4 seater saloon for him, Paul and Paul's 2 brothers. Slight issue was I didn't have a saloon! So we searched fleabay etc and ended up with a 2 owner 2500TC in blue, nicknamed "the beast". 18 months (luckily RBRR was moved back a year for COVID) of welding, rebushing, de-bumpering,  and a respray and the beast was prepared..  According to my sons it was the best triumph we have ever had.. and we have had a few. This RBRR went without a fault despite the potential disaster of being the only person who knew how 2 of the cars worked! My uncle and cousins loved the beast and joked that compared to the TR4A it was like driving the RBRR on a sofa.  Perhaps the most memorable moment being having a video call at 2 am in Monmouth services with my cousin in Australia who was supposed to be driving the beast but COVID restrictions in Australia stopped him from coming over. He watched the mayhem which is a RBRR control live and has promised to try and do one in the future.. The only issue we had with the TR6 was a minor flood in monsoon rain in glasgow which meant damp legs for driver and co-driver. 

So now another car (Stag 3.9L RV8) and back to driving with Simon, its going to be fun.. And even better, I beleive the new owner has entered "The Beast" I look forward to a reunion with the old blue jalopy!

Hi folks, 

Been great reading the memories of RBRRs past..

I have done it 4 times, twice in a TR6 with my sister and twice in a Stag with a friend (the owner), I also rebuilt a 2500TC for my cousins and uncle to run last time!. This year it will be a new stag (mine)..

Over these 4 attempts we have refined our approach with the aim of making the whole thing as enjoyable and safe as possible (some of this also comes from my experiences of lots of traveling long haul for my work)

I've put a list of things which really helped us in the past below (would be good to hear other peoples tips).

1) And this is of course a no-brainer, make the car as reliable as possible.. this is such a big topic I won't go any further! but in 3 of the 4 runs we have done we have had issues from stretched timing chains to snapped throttle cables (10 miles from the end). It goes without saying that the fewer of these issues there are the better.

2) Be comfortable in the car. It is 48 hours and it is amazing what gets on your nerves! make sure your seats are comfy (cushions can help), car temp needs to be right (in our car the driver at the time controls this as its important they are comfortable). This usually means that the car is a bit too cold for sleeping, so bring a blanket.. We also bring a pillow (bring the one you use at home it'll help you sleep!).. Noise is a real issue in these old cars.. You may like the throaty exhaust note on an hour run, but 48 hours and you will be out of your mind. Earplugs are great, I use noise cancelling headphones (I have them for my job).. They can be contreversial but they are legal in the UK. Oddly noise cancelling headphones actually help you hear some noises, it is easier to here your co-driver for example (not always an advantage, I know!), unfortunatly you can also here a whining diff or noisey tappets more easily, but wind noise and exhaust "Booming" are much reduced. If you can remove the noise at source of course this is much better.. My TR had a whistle that developed around the drivers window.. sorted by stuffing some foam in the gap!. If you are sleeping consider an eye-mask.. it is hard enough to sleep in daylight, but those lovely LED overhead lights on motorways at night are almost worse!

3) Think about what you eat/drink.. starting with a hangover is a real challenge.. for keeping alert drinking plenty of liquid during the run is really important.. We bring a load of bottled water and it is amazing how much gets drunk... Use Caffiene carefully.. Fundamentally you want to be alert only for driving, when you are not driving you really want to get some kip. If you tank up too much on caffiene you'll not sleep and bomb on the second night (don't ask how I know this). We found if you only have a coffee directly before a driving stint it all works pretty well.. Energy drinks, be careful, they are V potent as we all know, they may keep you going for 24hours but you may bomb in the second 24 hours. Be wary of high sugar stuff as well.  It can make you alert, but you can "crash" spectacularly.. Better to eat fruit! We got obsessed by satusmas one year... no idea why but they tasted great and the car smelt wonderful at the end.

4) Exercise. Odd I know.. but we found that a session of jumping up and down, running to get the book signed or just running around the car (all at a Checkpoint of course) really helped to wake us up! The falls of shin are great for this of course 🙂. It all gets the blood moving. Also good if you are of later years (stops DVTs). We also found that having a good wash at a checkpoint helps (although the one toilet at Skiache makes this a bit challenging :-).

5) Agree rules. One thing that I have a real issue with this that I get irrationally angry, stubourn and impatient when I am tired. This is not good! So we have always had a rule that the co-driver can tell you you are being a Tw"t if you have lost the plot and ask to take over. Another rule we have is that if you are driving and you are tired, it is not embarrasing to stop and ask the co-driver to take over. This has happened 3 times in 4 runs and in each case it was probably safety critical. If both of you are knackered then it is fine to stop and have a kip (bring 2 blankets and pillows!). Generally we also follow a bit of a system at a stop. The last driver takes the book in for signing, fills the car and buys the next driver a coffee. The next driver, sorts themselves out in the car, getting the seat, satnav and mirrors set up. Once the coffee has been delivered to the new driver and the car is underway the last driver is "off duty" and can sleep, phone home, do his/her twitter/facebook/nails.. Obviously this only works if you are using Satnav.. I really admire people who use a book in a 2 person team (respect!)

Hoepfully these might help newbys on the RBRR. Would also be great to hear other peoples tips for a comfy RBRR.

Cheers

Tim

19 hours ago, pardown said:

I think Ive just bought the same one. Does it work ok?

My speedo has just seized breaking the cable and I can't face changing it as it requires seats out, carpets out, transmission tunnel out 😩 (Vitesse with O/D) . Ive got enough other jobs to be sorting.

Yes works fine.. can take a few mins to find the satelites and then its great!

I've also fitted a cheap GPS digital speedo. Cost just over a tenner and is powered by a USB. Perhaps not the pritiest but if it stops me getting a ticket, worth every penny. 

Tim

I still have mine programmed into Google maps from last time. Guessing there will just be a few tweaks this time. 

Tim

Been battling with a vibration at around 70mph. These bad boys helped a bit.  But in the end cv jointed prop sorted it. So the stag is now all CV jointed!

Just back from a weekend in lemans with the flying banana. Good shakedown trip. No major issues. Wipers need sorting, tracking was a bit off and an annoying vibration at 70 mph. Looks like I need new ujs at the minimum.  

Tim

Thanks Jim!

Anyone know when the drivers briefing is?

Tim

Finished first set of shake down runs with the rebuilt 3.9l engine. Few issues including the ignition wire inexplicably getting caught on the steering column uj and shorting (luckily when I was coming out of my garage). But getting there. And even gave 27mpg on a return run to Portsmouth!

Took the stag for a shake down run after its engine rebuild. Burbled lovely. Fuel efficiency wasn't great, but maybe that was the exuberance of driving the car again!

Tim

Big day this weekend.. 

The new V8 in my stag burst to life!

We are getting there!

tim

On 15/03/2023 at 00:57, McJim said:

I'll be wearing the kilt this year and will wear it as a true Scotsman.

By the way, it's the really, really short one that I know you like the best.😉

Jim.

I'd be worried about drafts!

1 hour ago, RobPearce said:

My "steed" for this year is currently running quite nicely apart from feeling a bit gutless at the top end. I didn't use it for the DPMR (second reserve did that job) but have entered it for Border Raiders and intend to for C2C.

P.S. Shynsy may want to fix the typo in the thread title?

Whoops!

4 minutes ago, Amy Wade said:

You're further ahead than me, I'm in the process of stripping down my car. Every mechanical component of my Spitfire needs my attention. 

I also decided the beginning of October isn't a tight enough deadline so I've entered Border Raiders...

Brings back great memories of my first Triumph,  a 1976 spit 1500. Lots of issues, but a joy to work on. Ended up with boy racer twin side draft webers.. sounded ace. Not sure it went much faster though. 

Tim 

Thought I would start a thread for us to post progress on our cars ready for the RBRR. Reached an important point a few weeks back with my stag... I now have an engine and gearbox installed. 

now just have to get it to run 🙂

tim

Thanks for the info Jason and Tim.  

Hi All,

Anyone know approx. When rhe RBRR 2023 entry will open?  Last time I remember i was in casualty with my son trying to log in with limited battery and bandwidth on my phone. 

Tim

43 minutes ago, Clive said:

 

Afraid not. I believe it is expensive for a Club to attend (and be given a code)

We went a few years ago, used te code from another club we are members of, but I think tickets had to be booked well in advance. I will check

Thanks. Just discovered that the MG Midget Owners club has a code and I am a member.. ( interestingly there are a lot of codes for other clubs easily available on the internet... just saying..).

tim