Paris, 22 April, 2016

After the first two days had been spent mostly on flat landscapes, participants enjoyed the drive on mountain roads for this third day.

These were not the high passes of the Alps or Pyrénées but mid mountain ranges.

With the « Massif Central » and the « Vercors » located on both sides of the Rhône valley, this 3rd stage between Lyon and Valence was perfect to cover both locations.

The morning was spent on the west side of the Rhône, through the foothills of Massif Central, and the Vercors in the afternoon. The day was beginning with an early rally stage directly after Lyon departure. After an enjoyable trip at around  1000 - 1200 meters of altitude, a second one was scheduled in Saint Bonnet Le Froid (an old rally stage of the Monte Carlo rally)

With these two rally stages behind them in the morning, all the cars were finally descending into the Rhone valley for lunch. After this stop, it was time to visit the east side of the Rhone, climbing to the Vercors roads which had literally been dug into rock.

If the weather was sunny on first two days, this third day presented the drivers with much more cloudy conditions, even some light rain towards the very end.

The last stage saw Andrew Smith’s GT40 win in VHC class, but the general lead remains in the hands of Jean-Pierre Lajournade with a pretty good margin.

No track today. Tomorrow the drivers will compete again on the Circuit de Lédenon.

Report and Photos ... Thomas Quintin