Day 75

13. July 2000, Erfoud to Tanger

Another hot day and we finally drive out of the Sahara desert. On our way out we see some more of the variety in Moroccan landscapes. Towards the end we drive along the Atlantic coast until we reach Tanger. The weather is getting cooler, or less hot to be more appropriate, as the wind is coming from the sea.
The competition is now more or less finished, as there are no more tests, and the remaining days will just be transit: long day drives towards London. Of course, there are still things that can break down on the car. Especially as most will now drive high speeds long time on the motor-ways, which the cars have not seen in a while, causing new strains. So one has to be careful and should not consider results final but the time requirements for the coming days are generous and there will be only two time-checks a day. Our current rank is first in our category and fourth overall, if we manage to take this result back to London, we would be more than glad.
A final note on Morrocan driving. Unlike other Arabic or Mediterranean drivers, the Moroccans are surprisingly slow and non-aggressive drivers. When you pull up to them, they will drive to the right and let you pass. This is very rare to see anywhere in the world, but especially unexpected in a country like this. The Morrocans also seem to have bought up all the Diesel Mercedes-Benz limousines that were produced in the seventies and early eighties as all the taxis and many others drive nothing but that.

Overall 2 hour 03 minutes penalty

The official results can be looked up on this website