The Brexit Grand Tour in an Ariel Nomad
Discussion
Ariel Nomad has been my Dream Car since I saw one first time on Pistonheads. I absolutely loved its quirkiness, the speed, how cool it looked and most importantly that it was just amazing on the road as it is on gravel rally stages in Wales. It was AWESOME!
My partner and I popped in to Ariel factory on the way to Cornwall once, had a good look around one Nomad and I loved it even more but then the penny dropped - the waiting list for one is minimum 18 months. Generally, I'm not the most patient person, but when it comes to car purchases, and especially DREAM CAR purchases, that was too much for me so we just left it at that. I've been watching the market ever since and I think only two popped up for sale within that time. Not in the right specification until that one day in April when I saw my future car. I went to test drive it and I had to have it. Since then I put about two thousands miles on it already, going on roadtrips to Cornwall and Wales, checking its top speed on the beach at Pendine Sands, driving children around for charity at the Top Gear track during The SuperCar Event and generally loving every minute of the ownership.
That's the car part, now for the trip:
We were supposed to drive to mongolia this summer. First, as a part of The mongol Rally, then we changed our minds and decided to go independently. I didn't like the limitations that mongol Rally organisers apply on participants plus few other things. Later I got the Nomad and of course I didn't want to leave the car for months without driving it. Unfortunately, due to its value I wouldn't want to risk taking it outside of EU without cover of my UK insurance. Hence, the idea of the european trip. Then, of course, as always with our plans, it snowballed and from going to few EU countries it developed into going to ALL EU countries.
We call it The Brexit Grand Tour - going to every country of the European Union in a car built in the UK. In a way, showing what amazing company is UK leaving... The best bits of EU in one roadtrip, visiting amazing places in an amazing car.
That's the story. Now it's time to get ready, as you can imagine it requires a lot of planning to go anywhere further in the Nomad, not even mentioning three months of transcontinental travel, carrying photo and video gear, etc.
The preparation:
We normally travel light. As in one shared suitcase for both of us for up to a week. But travelling in a Nomad for three months takes it to another level. Especially with video making and editing in mind. Cameras, big laptop, lenses, drone and so on and so on. And unfortunately even bigger issue than the lack of space is the security - you can’t really leave anything on the Nomad and go exploring.
I’ve tried putting a roofbox on it
but it looked ridiculous so had to go back to the drawing board.
I came up with the metal tool box idea but I also wanted to retain the spare wheel so had to completely redesign the carrier.
After lots of cutting, grinding, head scratching and some swearing the design was ready and a friendly welder finished the job for me.
In the Nomad you are very exposed to the elements - we’re ok with rain being well equipped in wet gear but heat is a big issue. More on that later…
We got sponsored a CeramicPro treatment by the London branch. It took them almost five days of very hard work taking the car apart, covering EVERYTHING in this nano-amazingness but the car looked brand new afterwards and hopefully it will be very well protected during a trip like this.
As for the route - there was a rough idea of visiting every country in the EU but that’s pretty much it. Playing it by ear is our usual modus operandi and we change plans all the time so there wasn’t even a point of creating anything too in depth.
Main thing - we wanted to have fun, create amazing memories and footage for people to see.
The trip:
Day 1 - London to Bruges to Nurburgring
We left at 5am after having about 3h sleep. The plan was to attend one of the turistenfahren at the Ring on the weekend, so we wouldn’t have to wait until the following week.
Early morning drives are always fun but I didn’t expect what I saw driving on M25: there was a guy in another Nomad heading for the Channel!
Ruta says she never saw me this excited, come on - it’s still my dream car, every petrolhead will get it! I’ve never actually seen another one on the road apart from mine so it was a big deal. Ruta got some photos and videos and after an enjoyable drive to Folkstone we got there 20min earlier than anticipated
. Unfortunately we’ve lost our Nomad friend at the gates…
Channel crossing was uneventful as they always are apart from Ruta figuring out that Nomad’s top cage is a great place for doing sit-ups.
And also for some impromptu swing lesson - Ruta’s great hobby. Apparently I’m not too bad at it but I still think it’s just a positive reinforcement so she’ll have a dance partner wherever she wants one.
After leaving Calais instead of staying on a motorway all the way to Bruges we got off it to explore some French and Belgian countryside. This is where Nomad always shines. B-roads are what it was made for, together with an occasional off roading. Normally this section is a really boring hour of driving but the country roads are actually very fun in the area.
Due to the open cockpit design I needed a waterproof satnav so bought a motorcycle TomTom Rider. What a revelation that was! After many years of trying to find interesting and fun roads wherever we go I only recently discovered that TomTom Rider has an option to Plan A Thrill where basically you choose how twisty and how hilly you want the fun route to be and sat nav will take to wherever you want to go, while having fun in process. Granted - it’s not for all cars since we ended up on some really questionable gravel roads but for the Nomad it’s amazing!
Bruges was pretty as usual - we actually much prefer it to Venice or Amsterdam. It has this very unique charm being touristy but still looking like people actually live there. Shopping is great, food is very good and unfortunately for Belgians but fortunately for us, it’s not as popular as it used to be due to bombings in Brussels, so it’s actually very pleasant in terms of crowds, being able to get a table in the restaurant etc, even in peak season.
We were pretty knackered after not getting much sleep the night before so we headed straight for the Ring after spending few hours in Bruges.
After a very hot motorway journey we got to Adenau - it’s time to introduce you to Nomad’s biggest design flaw:
It gets ridiculously hot in summer! The heat is much more of an issue than rain and cold. The hot air from the radiator and cooling pipes in front is being pushed through the center tunnel and out through the handbrake, the hydraulic brake and gearstick surrounds. It’s constantly blowing it with great force. I’ve had other cars which generated a lot of heat - after few hours on a track in my Corvette the carpet around the centre tunnel shrank so much that there’s still a gap. But Nomad is much worse - in other cars it’s just heat, not blowing hot air. And what’s even worse - the faster you go, the hotter it gets. So motorway driving in summer is very tiring. I’m working on a DIY solution to this problem but we’ll get to that later.
That was the end of day one. Tomorrow - Nurburgring.
Day 2 - Nurburgring
I love being there. Not just for the track but for the feeling of being surrounded only by like minded people. They just GET YOU. They understand your geekiness, they will get equally excited about your new tyres or the toaster that burns the shape of Nurburgring in your bread.
I have a great respect for the Ring. Like the one one has for the sea. It attracts me and scares me in an equal amount. I want to drive it fast but I also want to be able to get home afterwards and that’s the difficult balance to find.
Over the years I’ve driven the ring in the BMW 540, Z3M and the Corvette. Every one of them was different but I knew that doing it in a Nomad will be even more interesting.
Ruta was pretty afraid and when Ruta is afraid - that’s a big deal. In our relationship I’m the sensible one, she’s the risk taker. The only time that the roles reverse is when it comes to driving but I still often wonder how is she ok being a passenger on some of the roads we’ve driven. She says she trusts me and I would never abuse it.
We got to the ring pretty late after usual not being able to find correct car park when all signs and sat nav take you to the actual race track - one day I’ll learn. It was closed when we got there, somebody crashed and they had to remove the car. That was meant to be the story for the rest of the day.
For those of you who have never been to ring and plan your first trip - plan to give yourself maximum possible time to spend there. Aim for Sat early morning if you can if you have to be back on Sun. Very often track is closed for a long time due to accidents, weather can also ruin your travel plans. Earlier this year we drove there all the way in the Corvette just to be able to complete one lap in the car and two Ring Taxi ones before it started pouring with rain. And you don’t want to start your Nurburgring adventure in the rain! That’s why we also never go there during the week unless we’re in the area - too much risk of not being able to drive at all if the track is only open for few hours.
We chatted to some nice people, as always Nomad attracted a lot of attention. We filmed a bit in the carpark, plenty of interesting cars there. One guy drove a KTM X-Bow all the way from Spain and next to that Nomad looked VERY much like a Grand Tourer!
And then the track reopened and it was time for the lap. Since the car was already cold after standing for a while we went for a quick warm up drive - people normally don’t think about it but I strongly believe in warming myself up for a fast drive too. Not just the engine and the tyres. To put myself in the right mindframe of DRIVING FAST.
The laps are pretty expensive at 30 euro per lap but in my opinion it’s much better value for money than most of the trackdays in the UK. Silverstone or Brands Hatch are never below £200 and I’d much rather do 6-7 laps of the Ring.
When we got to the gate my heart sank - the guy who checks the cars said that removable steering wheels are not allowed!!! But he will let me do one lap as an exception...The only German not following “ordnung muss sein” mantra!
Nothing really prepares you for the attack on your senses that driving a Nomad on the Ring does. It’s normally loud but being surrounded and overtaken by many other very loud cars is something else. We didn’t bring helmets since there was no space for them at all so that magnified the experience. The car danced around corners and moved a lot under braking and acceleration but that’s what I like about driving it.
The lines I took were wrong most of the time, so time would have been crap, but it was more important for me to stay out of trouble and not slide into a wall or another car. Nomad is normally VERY tail happy and being on all terrain tyres doesn’t help while driving on the track. I glanced at Ruta few times and saw her squeezing the frame tightly. She was scared but enjoying it.
The Carousel is always our favorite section of the track. Nomad’s direct steering with no power assistance made it very twitchy and difficult to hold onto the line there but I made it. It was fun.
We finished the lap, got overtaken a lot but managed to overtake few. Another thing has been taken off my bucket list - I drove Ariel Nomad, MY Ariel Nomad on the Nurburgring. (green) Hell yeah!
Day 3 - Luxembourg
After leaving Ring area we headed towards Luxembourg. I’ve only been there once before and didn’t have any massive expectations but nevertheless it’s an EU country so we had to visit it.
On the way we decided to film a bit with the drone, I managed to clip a tree while following the Nomad but my Mavic is just as tough as my car so it survived without damage.
We also went on a little excursion in the forest since there were no signs against it. Had fun in the mud, staying on the tracks until we met a very unfriendly guy in a 4x4 who insisted on blocking us, taking photos and threatening calling the police. Oh well, we left him to it and carried on driving towards Luxembourg in a properly muddy MudNomad
We got caught by some serious rain on the way, however it really isn’t as bad as people think it is - if you’re going fast enough you don’t get wet at all. The only problem is when you stop
The rest of the day 1 and 2 in Luxembourg were spent catching up on editing photos and videos and also on enjoying some amazing roads. In the rain...a lot. Today, we’re heading for Holland. It's raining again
I hope you like me sharing it, we are on all social media as "MUDNOMAD" if you wish to follow our adventures.
I would love to hear from you if you have any unusual ideas on routes, places to visit and explore in the Nomad.
EDIT
Added links to episodes on YT:
1) London - Belgium - Germany - Luxembourg
2) Nurburgring
3) Holland and Denmark
My partner and I popped in to Ariel factory on the way to Cornwall once, had a good look around one Nomad and I loved it even more but then the penny dropped - the waiting list for one is minimum 18 months. Generally, I'm not the most patient person, but when it comes to car purchases, and especially DREAM CAR purchases, that was too much for me so we just left it at that. I've been watching the market ever since and I think only two popped up for sale within that time. Not in the right specification until that one day in April when I saw my future car. I went to test drive it and I had to have it. Since then I put about two thousands miles on it already, going on roadtrips to Cornwall and Wales, checking its top speed on the beach at Pendine Sands, driving children around for charity at the Top Gear track during The SuperCar Event and generally loving every minute of the ownership.
That's the car part, now for the trip:
We were supposed to drive to mongolia this summer. First, as a part of The mongol Rally, then we changed our minds and decided to go independently. I didn't like the limitations that mongol Rally organisers apply on participants plus few other things. Later I got the Nomad and of course I didn't want to leave the car for months without driving it. Unfortunately, due to its value I wouldn't want to risk taking it outside of EU without cover of my UK insurance. Hence, the idea of the european trip. Then, of course, as always with our plans, it snowballed and from going to few EU countries it developed into going to ALL EU countries.
We call it The Brexit Grand Tour - going to every country of the European Union in a car built in the UK. In a way, showing what amazing company is UK leaving... The best bits of EU in one roadtrip, visiting amazing places in an amazing car.
That's the story. Now it's time to get ready, as you can imagine it requires a lot of planning to go anywhere further in the Nomad, not even mentioning three months of transcontinental travel, carrying photo and video gear, etc.
The preparation:
We normally travel light. As in one shared suitcase for both of us for up to a week. But travelling in a Nomad for three months takes it to another level. Especially with video making and editing in mind. Cameras, big laptop, lenses, drone and so on and so on. And unfortunately even bigger issue than the lack of space is the security - you can’t really leave anything on the Nomad and go exploring.
I’ve tried putting a roofbox on it
but it looked ridiculous so had to go back to the drawing board.I came up with the metal tool box idea but I also wanted to retain the spare wheel so had to completely redesign the carrier.
After lots of cutting, grinding, head scratching and some swearing the design was ready and a friendly welder finished the job for me.
In the Nomad you are very exposed to the elements - we’re ok with rain being well equipped in wet gear but heat is a big issue. More on that later…
We got sponsored a CeramicPro treatment by the London branch. It took them almost five days of very hard work taking the car apart, covering EVERYTHING in this nano-amazingness but the car looked brand new afterwards and hopefully it will be very well protected during a trip like this.
As for the route - there was a rough idea of visiting every country in the EU but that’s pretty much it. Playing it by ear is our usual modus operandi and we change plans all the time so there wasn’t even a point of creating anything too in depth.
Main thing - we wanted to have fun, create amazing memories and footage for people to see.
The trip:
Day 1 - London to Bruges to Nurburgring
We left at 5am after having about 3h sleep. The plan was to attend one of the turistenfahren at the Ring on the weekend, so we wouldn’t have to wait until the following week.
Early morning drives are always fun but I didn’t expect what I saw driving on M25: there was a guy in another Nomad heading for the Channel!
Ruta says she never saw me this excited, come on - it’s still my dream car, every petrolhead will get it! I’ve never actually seen another one on the road apart from mine so it was a big deal. Ruta got some photos and videos and after an enjoyable drive to Folkstone we got there 20min earlier than anticipated
. Unfortunately we’ve lost our Nomad friend at the gates… Channel crossing was uneventful as they always are apart from Ruta figuring out that Nomad’s top cage is a great place for doing sit-ups.
And also for some impromptu swing lesson - Ruta’s great hobby. Apparently I’m not too bad at it but I still think it’s just a positive reinforcement so she’ll have a dance partner wherever she wants one.
After leaving Calais instead of staying on a motorway all the way to Bruges we got off it to explore some French and Belgian countryside. This is where Nomad always shines. B-roads are what it was made for, together with an occasional off roading. Normally this section is a really boring hour of driving but the country roads are actually very fun in the area.
Due to the open cockpit design I needed a waterproof satnav so bought a motorcycle TomTom Rider. What a revelation that was! After many years of trying to find interesting and fun roads wherever we go I only recently discovered that TomTom Rider has an option to Plan A Thrill where basically you choose how twisty and how hilly you want the fun route to be and sat nav will take to wherever you want to go, while having fun in process. Granted - it’s not for all cars since we ended up on some really questionable gravel roads but for the Nomad it’s amazing!
Bruges was pretty as usual - we actually much prefer it to Venice or Amsterdam. It has this very unique charm being touristy but still looking like people actually live there. Shopping is great, food is very good and unfortunately for Belgians but fortunately for us, it’s not as popular as it used to be due to bombings in Brussels, so it’s actually very pleasant in terms of crowds, being able to get a table in the restaurant etc, even in peak season.
We were pretty knackered after not getting much sleep the night before so we headed straight for the Ring after spending few hours in Bruges.
After a very hot motorway journey we got to Adenau - it’s time to introduce you to Nomad’s biggest design flaw:
It gets ridiculously hot in summer! The heat is much more of an issue than rain and cold. The hot air from the radiator and cooling pipes in front is being pushed through the center tunnel and out through the handbrake, the hydraulic brake and gearstick surrounds. It’s constantly blowing it with great force. I’ve had other cars which generated a lot of heat - after few hours on a track in my Corvette the carpet around the centre tunnel shrank so much that there’s still a gap. But Nomad is much worse - in other cars it’s just heat, not blowing hot air. And what’s even worse - the faster you go, the hotter it gets. So motorway driving in summer is very tiring. I’m working on a DIY solution to this problem but we’ll get to that later.
That was the end of day one. Tomorrow - Nurburgring.
Day 2 - Nurburgring
I love being there. Not just for the track but for the feeling of being surrounded only by like minded people. They just GET YOU. They understand your geekiness, they will get equally excited about your new tyres or the toaster that burns the shape of Nurburgring in your bread.
I have a great respect for the Ring. Like the one one has for the sea. It attracts me and scares me in an equal amount. I want to drive it fast but I also want to be able to get home afterwards and that’s the difficult balance to find.
Over the years I’ve driven the ring in the BMW 540, Z3M and the Corvette. Every one of them was different but I knew that doing it in a Nomad will be even more interesting.
Ruta was pretty afraid and when Ruta is afraid - that’s a big deal. In our relationship I’m the sensible one, she’s the risk taker. The only time that the roles reverse is when it comes to driving but I still often wonder how is she ok being a passenger on some of the roads we’ve driven. She says she trusts me and I would never abuse it.
We got to the ring pretty late after usual not being able to find correct car park when all signs and sat nav take you to the actual race track - one day I’ll learn. It was closed when we got there, somebody crashed and they had to remove the car. That was meant to be the story for the rest of the day.
For those of you who have never been to ring and plan your first trip - plan to give yourself maximum possible time to spend there. Aim for Sat early morning if you can if you have to be back on Sun. Very often track is closed for a long time due to accidents, weather can also ruin your travel plans. Earlier this year we drove there all the way in the Corvette just to be able to complete one lap in the car and two Ring Taxi ones before it started pouring with rain. And you don’t want to start your Nurburgring adventure in the rain! That’s why we also never go there during the week unless we’re in the area - too much risk of not being able to drive at all if the track is only open for few hours.
We chatted to some nice people, as always Nomad attracted a lot of attention. We filmed a bit in the carpark, plenty of interesting cars there. One guy drove a KTM X-Bow all the way from Spain and next to that Nomad looked VERY much like a Grand Tourer!
And then the track reopened and it was time for the lap. Since the car was already cold after standing for a while we went for a quick warm up drive - people normally don’t think about it but I strongly believe in warming myself up for a fast drive too. Not just the engine and the tyres. To put myself in the right mindframe of DRIVING FAST.
The laps are pretty expensive at 30 euro per lap but in my opinion it’s much better value for money than most of the trackdays in the UK. Silverstone or Brands Hatch are never below £200 and I’d much rather do 6-7 laps of the Ring.
When we got to the gate my heart sank - the guy who checks the cars said that removable steering wheels are not allowed!!! But he will let me do one lap as an exception...The only German not following “ordnung muss sein” mantra!
Nothing really prepares you for the attack on your senses that driving a Nomad on the Ring does. It’s normally loud but being surrounded and overtaken by many other very loud cars is something else. We didn’t bring helmets since there was no space for them at all so that magnified the experience. The car danced around corners and moved a lot under braking and acceleration but that’s what I like about driving it.
The lines I took were wrong most of the time, so time would have been crap, but it was more important for me to stay out of trouble and not slide into a wall or another car. Nomad is normally VERY tail happy and being on all terrain tyres doesn’t help while driving on the track. I glanced at Ruta few times and saw her squeezing the frame tightly. She was scared but enjoying it.
The Carousel is always our favorite section of the track. Nomad’s direct steering with no power assistance made it very twitchy and difficult to hold onto the line there but I made it. It was fun.
We finished the lap, got overtaken a lot but managed to overtake few. Another thing has been taken off my bucket list - I drove Ariel Nomad, MY Ariel Nomad on the Nurburgring. (green) Hell yeah!
Day 3 - Luxembourg
After leaving Ring area we headed towards Luxembourg. I’ve only been there once before and didn’t have any massive expectations but nevertheless it’s an EU country so we had to visit it.
On the way we decided to film a bit with the drone, I managed to clip a tree while following the Nomad but my Mavic is just as tough as my car so it survived without damage.
We also went on a little excursion in the forest since there were no signs against it. Had fun in the mud, staying on the tracks until we met a very unfriendly guy in a 4x4 who insisted on blocking us, taking photos and threatening calling the police. Oh well, we left him to it and carried on driving towards Luxembourg in a properly muddy MudNomad
We got caught by some serious rain on the way, however it really isn’t as bad as people think it is - if you’re going fast enough you don’t get wet at all. The only problem is when you stop
The rest of the day 1 and 2 in Luxembourg were spent catching up on editing photos and videos and also on enjoying some amazing roads. In the rain...a lot. Today, we’re heading for Holland. It's raining again
I hope you like me sharing it, we are on all social media as "MUDNOMAD" if you wish to follow our adventures.
I would love to hear from you if you have any unusual ideas on routes, places to visit and explore in the Nomad.
EDIT
Added links to episodes on YT:
1) London - Belgium - Germany - Luxembourg
2) Nurburgring
3) Holland and Denmark
Edited by rottie102 on Monday 17th July 04:41
The Moose said:
Awesome!
You shouldn't give up on the drive to mongolia in the Nomad. I did it a little while back (not in a Nomad I might add!) and the insurance outside of the UK wasn't totally impossible.
Enjoy your trip and I look forward to seeing the updates!
Thank you! Oh, I know I can get insurance to legally drive it there. It's more about the value of the car and the fact that they will all be third party only. Just in case it vanishes somewhere in one of the Stans You shouldn't give up on the drive to mongolia in the Nomad. I did it a little while back (not in a Nomad I might add!) and the insurance outside of the UK wasn't totally impossible.
Enjoy your trip and I look forward to seeing the updates!
We were planning to drive my Skoda Yeti, but who knows - if we love the experience so much this time and I somehow manage to insure it fully comp for driving all the way and back...
Goedemorgen everyone!
We made it to Holland last night. Morning in the Luxembourg welcomed us with even more rain... We're still trying to figure out what is the best solution for waterproofing our...bums So far all waterproof trousers eventually gave in after sitting in a puddle in the seat for some time. Sitting on an inflatable cushion is okish, just not that comfortable for driving. At least the heat from the radiator made it slightly more pleasant.
We hit some detours through German and Belgian countryside - just like in the UK people love to pile up behind a lorry or a caravan and do 20mph in 60 for miles. Good I have a passenger that can assist with overtaking, Nomad's acceleration also helps.
We drove through Belgium and saw signs for Spa Francorchamps, we had to go and visit. I have to admit I've never been there before. Watched the F1 race many times on TV but just never had a chance. We were hoping that the track will be open to pop in and have a photo at but the main gate was as far as we got, despite it being in use. There was quite a lot of noise coming from it but we didn't get to see what was causing it. Oh well, I'm definitely coming back for the F1 next year!
That's one of the amazing things about my girlfriend - she couldn't care less about all the car geeky stuff that I'm interested in, yet she appreciates that it's important for me and likes to learn about it to understand me more. I've spent many driving hours explaining what piston rings are, who is Bernie Ecclestone and why exhaust on a new Ferrari California looks much better than the old one, all requested by her.
We just woke up in Zeeland, I've been to Holland many times before but not to this part. God it's flat! And windy! I don't know why but over many years of knowing first about the windmills then the windfarms, it never occurred to me that Holland might be a windy country. Doh. It's definitely going to stay in my head after driving a Nomad at 80mph with no doors. Especially after my mad evening dash to nearest MediaMarkt 15 miles away to buy a Macbook charger which we forgot in the last hotel.
We're meeting a friend today who will help us with some drone driving footage. Ruta is great at filming and editing (the youtube video is all her) but we still need to work on her flying so I can drive in it.
Have a great day everyone! Thank you for kind words and subscriptions so far, speak soon!
We made it to Holland last night. Morning in the Luxembourg welcomed us with even more rain... We're still trying to figure out what is the best solution for waterproofing our...bums
So far all waterproof trousers eventually gave in after sitting in a puddle in the seat for some time. Sitting on an inflatable cushion is okish, just not that comfortable for driving. At least the heat from the radiator made it slightly more pleasant. We hit some detours through German and Belgian countryside - just like in the UK people love to pile up behind a lorry or a caravan and do 20mph in 60 for miles. Good I have a passenger that can assist with overtaking, Nomad's acceleration also helps.
We drove through Belgium and saw signs for Spa Francorchamps, we had to go and visit. I have to admit I've never been there before. Watched the F1 race many times on TV but just never had a chance. We were hoping that the track will be open to pop in and have a photo at but the main gate was as far as we got, despite it being in use. There was quite a lot of noise coming from it but we didn't get to see what was causing it. Oh well, I'm definitely coming back for the F1 next year!
That's one of the amazing things about my girlfriend - she couldn't care less about all the car geeky stuff that I'm interested in, yet she appreciates that it's important for me and likes to learn about it to understand me more. I've spent many driving hours explaining what piston rings are, who is Bernie Ecclestone and why exhaust on a new Ferrari California looks much better than the old one
, all requested by her. We just woke up in Zeeland, I've been to Holland many times before but not to this part. God it's flat! And windy! I don't know why but over many years of knowing first about the windmills then the windfarms, it never occurred to me that Holland might be a windy country. Doh. It's definitely going to stay in my head after driving a Nomad at 80mph with no doors. Especially after my mad evening dash to nearest MediaMarkt 15 miles away to buy a Macbook charger which we forgot in the last hotel.
We're meeting a friend today who will help us with some drone driving footage. Ruta is great at filming and editing (the youtube video is all her) but we still need to work on her flying so I can drive in it.
Have a great day everyone! Thank you for kind words and subscriptions so far, speak soon!
Today's post is sponsored by the letter N - like Nurburgring and Noise
To start with - the Nurburgring video is ready!
Ruta says that it was very difficult for a non-petrolhead to edit it in a way that would show what is important to us but I think she did a good job!
Second thing - the Noise!
When we were thinking about the trip, we thought it would be great if we could avoid the motorways. Unfortunately in reality if we want to visit all the EU countries, we would probably need 6 months minimum to do it this way. And being on motorways for hours every day sucks in a Nomad...
We didn't want take helmets due to space constraints plus I hate wearing a helmet in the car. So we wear headphones as ear protection, but still after 3-4h on the motorway we are very tired due to noise. The wind is the biggest factor. Plus we don't want to listen to loud music for such a long time and lose hearing in process.
We've tried over ear protectors but they are all too tight to wear them comfortably for hours... And headache is even worse than noise
Do you guys have any recommendations? Something that will be comfortable over our apparently big heads? I've used a great Peltor noise cancelling intercom system on a paramotor but I don't know whether I can waterproof it plus that's another thing that could be stolen from the car if we leave it somewhere.
Somebody nicked the umbrella from it already
Now as for the trip - we got to Germany again from Holland, stayed the night in Bremen and are just about to leave for Denmark.
As a goodbye to Zeeland I managed to have some fun there - can't post it here but check out a cool drone video on our Instagram feed!
As much as I find Belgium,Denmark, Sweden and Finland pretty, I just couldn't live there as a petrolhead... Really not enough fun roads to drive on.
We've travelled all the way to the top of Europe in the £700 FerYaris from Gumtree over the New Year's, way past the Arctic Circle and did over 6000miles in it and really didn't encounter many good roads, without silly speed limits etc.
Granted, it was -40c and we ice skated on some of the roads but I've been there in summer too and the impression is the same.
Gotta run - 6h of driving ahead of us. Let the noise begin!
To start with - the Nurburgring video is ready!
Ruta says that it was very difficult for a non-petrolhead to edit it in a way that would show what is important to us but I think she did a good job!
Second thing - the Noise!
When we were thinking about the trip, we thought it would be great if we could avoid the motorways. Unfortunately in reality if we want to visit all the EU countries, we would probably need 6 months minimum to do it this way. And being on motorways for hours every day sucks in a Nomad...
We didn't want take helmets due to space constraints plus I hate wearing a helmet in the car. So we wear headphones as ear protection, but still after 3-4h on the motorway we are very tired due to noise. The wind is the biggest factor. Plus we don't want to listen to loud music for such a long time and lose hearing in process.
We've tried over ear protectors but they are all too tight to wear them comfortably for hours... And headache is even worse than noise
Do you guys have any recommendations? Something that will be comfortable over our apparently big heads? I've used a great Peltor noise cancelling intercom system on a paramotor but I don't know whether I can waterproof it plus that's another thing that could be stolen from the car if we leave it somewhere.
Somebody nicked the umbrella from it already
Now as for the trip - we got to Germany again from Holland, stayed the night in Bremen and are just about to leave for Denmark.
As a goodbye to Zeeland I managed to have some fun there - can't post it here but check out a cool drone video on our Instagram feed!
As much as I find Belgium,Denmark, Sweden and Finland pretty, I just couldn't live there as a petrolhead... Really not enough fun roads to drive on.
We've travelled all the way to the top of Europe in the £700 FerYaris from Gumtree over the New Year's, way past the Arctic Circle and did over 6000miles in it and really didn't encounter many good roads, without silly speed limits etc.
Granted, it was -40c and we ice skated on some of the roads
but I've been there in summer too and the impression is the same. Gotta run - 6h of driving ahead of us. Let the noise begin!
nfcf said:
Cheap: Try a pair of Etymotic headphones. They are some of the better in-ear headphones at reducing external noise https://www.etymotic.com/consumer/earphones/mk5.ht...
More expensive: Look at some custom moulded IEM like Ultimate Ears http://pro.ultimateears.com
The trick would be to get an intercom that'll work with the above so you can still chat, which is something that I am still looking into.
Thank you for your suggestions! My in ear headphones (A-Jays) are actually a pretty good fit so I don't think I can improve much there. I really think I need an EXTRA protection so they add up. More expensive: Look at some custom moulded IEM like Ultimate Ears http://pro.ultimateears.com
The trick would be to get an intercom that'll work with the above so you can still chat, which is something that I am still looking into.
Another thing I need to buy is those little round stick-on convex mirrors. The blind spot with the Nomad's tiny mirrors is horrible and I can live with it for normal use but with constant lane changing on motorways it's really not safe. I don't care if that will ruin the looks for some.
timjhhk said:
Great thread, as an owner of a Nomad and a Mavic drone I feel a real cameraderie
Couple of things, Amy chance you could share more details of the storage box mount, I could use one of those
Don't give up on the mongolia idea, I've been there a couple of times (without Nomad) but it is a country where the machine would be perfect !
Hi! Couple of things, Amy chance you could share more details of the storage box mount, I could use one of those
Don't give up on the mongolia idea, I've been there a couple of times (without Nomad) but it is a country where the machine would be perfect !
Sorry, I overlooked your post.
First I cut off the "feet" of the frame, normally the frame is angled. I needed it straight and lover so had to cut all 4 shorter, front 2 shorter than rear. Then the big job that was removing the wheel mount. It was a PITA to cut off without destroying the legs but reciprocating metal saw eventually managed. Then we spot welded the feet in the positions that we thought were ok and LUCKILY it fits
We needed to add few crossbars to move the wheel back and at angle. I got it all powdercoated so it looks very smart.
Box was only £65 off ebay. I wanted something to match the look of the Nomad. I cut off the middle clasp and added two key locked to the sides, £3 screwfix finest
I have to say it wasn't easy, but it does work rather well now for touring. However the car IS even more prone to oversteer now, putting the box full of luggage on top of the engine and moving a heavy wheel even further back didn't improve weight distribution. I can feel the difference in the corners.
There is no temperature issue from the exhaust. It doesn't even get warm. It also gives us a bit of extra storage under the wheel. We keep the inflatable watermelon there
Bicycle chain is for safety, just in case the mount somehow brakes the wheel will stay on the car plus it's more difficult to nick it, otherwise it's two bolts to undo. I bought a new spare wheel carrier from Ariel after I modified my one so I just swap them over as needed. It's only 4 bolts.
Let me know if you want to know anything else.
Max5476 said:
On the motorbike I always use foam ear plugs. I bought a selection pack and found the size that was most comfortable. However I wear a helmet, and have a Bluetooth headset and intercom fitted in that, allowing me to chat to my pillion.
It might be worth trying different over ear defenders, the comfort level can vary significantly.
It would be interesting to see how active noise cancelling headphones worked, although I think the microphones would struggle with a lot of the direct wind.
Thank you for your advice. Unfortunately trying many different pairs is difficult when we're on the road. Most of the shops we've been to have max three pairs available.It might be worth trying different over ear defenders, the comfort level can vary significantly.
It would be interesting to see how active noise cancelling headphones worked, although I think the microphones would struggle with a lot of the direct wind.
I was also thinking about over ear noise cancelling headphones but again, that's another big addition to our luggage with literally zero space available.
Truckosaurus said:
I know it would look rubbish, but did you ever consider using a space saver spare wheel?
(Especially as the spare is currently an AT tyre and the 4 wheels on the car are on road tyres).
No. It would look rubbish (Especially as the spare is currently an AT tyre and the 4 wheels on the car are on road tyres).
Part of the appeal of the Nomad as my Dream Car is how it looks. Plus I can deal with the weight balance at the moment without sacrificing the safety or fun. It's noticeable, that's it.
The spare is actually a Mud Terrain, I have a set of M/T that I use offroading. The tyres on at the moment are A/T. Yokohama Geolandars G015. I wholeheartedly recommend them!
Thank you guys for your kind words! It means a lot to us, we put a lot of effort in filming and editing and it's really nice to see that people like the videos.
Latest video from Holland and Denmark is live on YT
We're currently in Sweden. Denmark was pretty, we stayed in a very nice B&B on FYN.
This type of accommodation is always our favorite type, we love the experience of staying at someone's home. The more personal interaction than in the hotel.Especially in the countryside.
Driving was very uneventful, 30-45-30mph all the way so we eventually gave up on searching for fun roads and just stuck to motorways...
Copenhagen is pretty, it's a great foodie destination. I've been there few times and enjoyed the food every time.
Our latest find was http://www.matcopenhagen.dk/ , really nice modern take on AllYouCanEat.
It was some sort of Jazz Festival in Copenhagen so Ruta enjoyed it very much.
We wanted to get to Sweden the same day. The plan was to stay the weekend working on videos and visit the Koenigsegg factory and do the tour on Mon morning. I missed out on it during our Arctic trip, the factory was closed for the winter. Since there was an error on their website, I called them up from Denmark, only to find out that now it's closed for the summer. Oh well, next time in Sweden...
I have to apologise to Sweden - you do have some fun roads. Especially in a Nomad. In the forests. In the rain. This is the coolest thing about this car - you're bored on the road, just look for an opening between the trees and all of a sudden in your head you become Ari Vattanen, dancing on the gravel with a massive grin on your face. It was raining all day yesterday but we promised our friend who lives over an hour away to visit him so we made the most of the journey there and had some fun on our "personal rally stages". The trip was worth it, had a great time BBQing by the lake even if we got very cold on the way back around midnight.
We are now really looking forward to moving to some warmer climates - look out for me complaining soon that it's too hot!
We stayed in Sweden in Almhult, the birthplace of IKEA. In IKEA hotel, near IKEA museum. It doesn't get more Swedish than that! It was actually very pleasant, with nice breakfast, good service and fast internet. This morning we're heading to Stockholm and in the afternoon leaving Sweden on a ferry.
Speak soon!
Latest video from Holland and Denmark is live on YT
We're currently in Sweden. Denmark was pretty, we stayed in a very nice B&B on FYN.
This type of accommodation is always our favorite type, we love the experience of staying at someone's home. The more personal interaction than in the hotel.Especially in the countryside.
Driving was very uneventful, 30-45-30mph all the way so we eventually gave up on searching for fun roads and just stuck to motorways...
Copenhagen is pretty, it's a great foodie destination. I've been there few times and enjoyed the food every time.
Our latest find was http://www.matcopenhagen.dk/ , really nice modern take on AllYouCanEat.
It was some sort of Jazz Festival in Copenhagen so Ruta enjoyed it very much.
We wanted to get to Sweden the same day. The plan was to stay the weekend working on videos and visit the Koenigsegg factory and do the tour on Mon morning. I missed out on it during our Arctic trip, the factory was closed for the winter. Since there was an error on their website, I called them up from Denmark, only to find out that now it's closed for the summer. Oh well, next time in Sweden...
I have to apologise to Sweden - you do have some fun roads. Especially in a Nomad. In the forests. In the rain. This is the coolest thing about this car - you're bored on the road, just look for an opening between the trees and all of a sudden in your head you become Ari Vattanen, dancing on the gravel with a massive grin on your face. It was raining all day yesterday but we promised our friend who lives over an hour away to visit him so we made the most of the journey there and had some fun on our "personal rally stages". The trip was worth it, had a great time BBQing by the lake even if we got very cold on the way back around midnight.
We are now really looking forward to moving to some warmer climates - look out for me complaining soon that it's too hot!
We stayed in Sweden in Almhult, the birthplace of IKEA. In IKEA hotel, near IKEA museum. It doesn't get more Swedish than that! It was actually very pleasant, with nice breakfast, good service and fast internet. This morning we're heading to Stockholm and in the afternoon leaving Sweden on a ferry.
Speak soon!
Vocht said:
Love the artificial grass for your mats. Brilliant idea!
Thank you! Both Ruta and I love it! It makes driving/travelling in sandals so much more pleasant, which makes heat (and socks ) management much easier! Trip update - We are on a ferry to Finland at the moment, Ruta is napping to get some energy before video editing so I have access to the laptop - still can't force myself to/enjoy typing long posts on a touchscreen. I'm a keyboard kind of guy
No photos this time because internet is very very slow.Yesterday morning we had to leave Ikea town for Stockholm, I booked a ferry to Aland Islands for 5.30pm. Since I would like to share with you all of the trip, not just the fun parts - I felt like s**t. Couldn't keep my eyes open, no appetite, zero energy. As much as I love the Nomad, it's literally one of the worst travel modes when you don't feel well. I didn't want to lose the booking so had to push through it, I think just under 300miles of motorway hell. But we made it just before the boarding cut off and it was all good.
Nothing interesting happened during that leg, apart from driving a bit with an almost identical Corvette to my one but the owner didn't seem too friendly.
Doesn't it disappoint you when being a petrolhead, you feel excited about seeing an interesting car and you want to smile/give thumbs up etc to the owner and they just couldn't care less? For me it's always an "Oh......
" moment.If you're ever in need of crossing the Baltic sea, I would definitely recommend doing it the way we did it. Stockholm to Mariehamn and then Marienhamn to Turku. We travelled overnight 5.30pm to 7am, for £99 we got a nice cabin with shower and bathroom. Food on board was delicious. Really good experience. Apart from us missing the wake up call, running to find out the the ferry is soon departing back with all the passengers already on board
But hey, we're always ALMOST late for every flight/ferry. I've never heard of Aland Islands before - they are very very pretty. The whole journey is, since you are passing hundreds of tiny Swedish islands. Alands are quiet, with very little tourists but if you enjoy peace and quiet for few days - worth visiting.
Exciting update - We've found comfortable ear defenders! I knew Peltor will work but couldn't find them anywhere before, they had them in Class Ohlson in Marienhamn. I'm really looking forward to silence. Also useful on a ferry with many kids!
We're driving to Helsinki tonight and tomorrow we're starting Eastern European leg of our journey!
Video from Sweden should be ready shortly.
Little Bob said:
What a fantastic trip - love the videos, more please!
The Sweden one is ready and live on YTAfter a night in Finland we've reached Estonia yesterday. We didn't spend much time in Finland since we've travelled all through it in January and are a bit pushed for time over next 8 days.
We had a nice walkaround in Tallin's Old Town, it's very pretty. Full of tourists but still authentic enough to be enjoyable. Poor Estonians though, they really must not like the conversion to Euro and tourist prices in the town centre. It's like London in many places.
Ruta found an amazing vegan place, she's vegetarian most of the time but I enjoy my meats too much to be converted. It's actually interesting that it was no. 2 restaurant in town according to Trip Advisor - quite an achievement for a restaurant with such a limited appeal!
I absolutely love how people connect to us on social media! We get messages from different countries, people recommending places to visit, inviting for photoshoots etc. We have been recommended a rallycross track in Estonia, I called them up but unfortunately they were preparing for an event and we couldn't drive on it
It's so bloody cold!!! We've only reached the hotel at 10.30pm last night and last hour was really not pleasant in the Nomad. About 12c! In July! It's better during the day but still much colder than we anticipated. I bought gloves yesterday
We pretty much wear EVERYTHING in the evenings when driving. Helps with packing Once again, thank you for your feedback.
Ilusat päeva! (That's Have a nice day in Estonian apparently
)DELETED: Comment made by a member who's account has been deleted.
Thank you! It's a Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro. I love everything about it and take it everywhere. The stand, the projector, the battery life. Just make sure you buy one with 4gb of RAM, not 2. Two is not enough and I sold my previous one.
It's just the two of us doing all the filming. I'm a professional photographer so had all the technical knowledge and the gear, Ruta has the vision what she wants the videos to look like. She had to learn a lot over last two-three months to put it into reality.
The way we see it, we don't want them to be "car videos". We want them to be "road trip videos". The Nomad is like a team member. A mate we have fun with. But there are other aspects to traveling and roadtrips and we would like them to also be shown. Especially the food. That's one of the biggest advantages of traveling for us - new culinary experiences. We love it all, street simple and fine dining.
foxsasha said:
I was hoping for more car related content as Ive a Nomad on order. Wanted as much insight into traveling with one as possible, Ive vague plans about driving down from Yorkshire to Portsmouth, Bilbao/Santander, down through Spain the twisty way, over to Moroccoa and onto the Sahara. The details about heat problems, weight distribution, weather protection etc is hugely useful.
Personally Im not interested in watching another generic traveling/holiday blog.
Well I hope it looks nothing like a "generic holiday blog" so far... Personally Im not interested in watching another generic traveling/holiday blog.
but of course as you can see I will be sharing all the insights into the ownership and travels with the Nomad.Feel free to also ask specific questions.
Thanks guys!
Video from Alands, Finland, Estonia and Latvia is online I hope you will find it as funny as we do.
Over last three days we have just been chillin' at Ruta's grandmother's. Being constantly fed as always in this kind of scenario so the power to weight ratio will suffer.
For those of you without much experience of Eastern European countryside - there's always a lake nearby. Big ones, small ones, they are all free to access and locals' way of spending time on a sunny day is to pack the family up, go to the lake, have a BBQ and generally have a good time outdoors. Wild swimming as a concept doesn't exist here, it's just "swimming". It's free, fun and most of the families do it.
We found the lake for us, Ruta's family went with us, the plan was for me to take some of them for a ride in the Nomad. I didn't know what a gem of a location we will stumble upon. It was absolutely amazing for the Nomad! By the field, with the lake on the other side, dried muddy tracks, with one puddle if I wanted to turn the experience up to 11, safe enough for me, scary enough for them. It was so great to show them the "Nomadness" in this kind of environment, not on the road. People usually don't understand how much fun it can be to go at speed through countryside, sliding around, with mud spraying all over you. Of course I always make it safe and would never push it with a passenger but even SAFE is enough for an unforgettable experience, if it's the first time in your life you're experiencing something like that.
Ruta's 70+ granny was awesome, she loved the experience and was giggling like a schoolgirl when watching the videos after.
(video screenshots, hence poor image quality)
The car... Washing it will be fun We hope that the ceramic coating will make a big difference to the experience. There will be a video about it coming soon, for those who are more interested in the car aspect.
We're off to Vilnius this afternoon, stopping in Kaunas on the way for something very very exciting!
Video from Alands, Finland, Estonia and Latvia is online I hope you will find it as funny as we do.
Over last three days we have just been chillin' at Ruta's grandmother's. Being constantly fed as always in this kind of scenario so the power to weight ratio will suffer
. For those of you without much experience of Eastern European countryside - there's always a lake nearby. Big ones, small ones, they are all free to access and locals' way of spending time on a sunny day is to pack the family up, go to the lake, have a BBQ and generally have a good time outdoors. Wild swimming as a concept doesn't exist here, it's just "swimming". It's free, fun and most of the families do it.
We found the lake for us, Ruta's family went with us, the plan was for me to take some of them for a ride in the Nomad. I didn't know what a gem of a location we will stumble upon. It was absolutely amazing for the Nomad! By the field, with the lake on the other side, dried muddy tracks, with one puddle if I wanted to turn the experience up to 11
, safe enough for me, scary enough for them. It was so great to show them the "Nomadness" in this kind of environment, not on the road. People usually don't understand how much fun it can be to go at speed through countryside, sliding around, with mud spraying all over you. Of course I always make it safe and would never push it with a passenger but even SAFE is enough for an unforgettable experience, if it's the first time in your life you're experiencing something like that. Ruta's 70+ granny was awesome, she loved the experience and was giggling like a schoolgirl when watching the videos after.
(video screenshots, hence poor image quality)
The car... Washing it will be fun
We hope that the ceramic coating will make a big difference to the experience. There will be a video about it coming soon, for those who are more interested in the car aspect. We're off to Vilnius this afternoon, stopping in Kaunas on the way for something very very exciting!
foxsasha said:
Indeed. From the title I was hoping for a more Metcalfe road trip type car orientated video blog with more focus on how the car integrates into the trip rather than a happy hols people orientated story. It is what it is. Enjoy
The big difference is - those roadtrips don't last three months. There is only so much one can say about one car without repeating it and this is one thing we would like to avoid. Whenever there's anything new coming up re the Nomad - it will be a part of it. However nobody would want to hear that it's loud and windy and we get wet when it rains, for 11th time. We do have ideas for topic specific videos, but we're leaving that for moments when there won't be much happening during the trip. So far, we're normally a day or two behind with material and edits so we're happy with that.
I really really appreciate the feedback. It makes it so much more challenging and interesting for us.
Would you like to tell me what else in terms of car feedback you'd like to see?
Fuel range/consumption? Safety/security of leaving the car like this in public? Storage access?
What else?
ash73 said:
Awesome! Don't wash it, just clean the lights & windscreen. That's how it's meant to look.
The car - yes. But we also look like this after driving in it I did wash it yesterday, there is a whole video coming soon about the ceramic coating application and whether it worked or not. I might write a bit more about it too if anyone's interested. In the meantime:
I've found a car that is even less suitable to touring than the Nomad!
Ruta's uncle got a BA64 Russian Armoured Car from the 2nd World War as a gift from his wife and he let me take it for a little spin. Now that is a crazy vehicle! It's completely restored but what a nightmare to drive
.
Today we bumped into one of the mongol Rally teams in Vilnius. It was so good to catch up, they chose the longer way through Scandinavia and they're making their way south.
Hello everyone!
An overdue update :
We're in Poland now, video from Lithuania will be out soon but in the meantime you can watch Ruta's family's reactions when I took them out for a drive. You can see how much fun it was, they are all nuts
I had a first car trouble - the dash stopped working. It went all crazy and of course it happened in the worst possible moment, this what my night driving experience was like:
It's actually the second one! First was already replaced FOC by Ariel. So I'm kind of stuck with no fuel gauge for the rest of the trip which sucks. I don't care too much about speedo, I drive with satnav on most of the time.
On the way through Mazury, which is "The land of 1000 lakes" I got in a bit of trouble with Ruta - a friend recommended little detour to see some sights and explore some cool gravel roads. Normally that would be fine but this was the longest driving day so far - 12h, most of it in the rain. We were already wet from the morning and somehow I've found a particularly deep puddle on the way, you can see the video on Instagram. It was hilarious when we got completely soaked but some time later I was in the dog house when the cold kicked in...
This part of Poland doesn't have any motorways, so the progress is very slow, lots of overtaking, villages etc. But it is so pretty! Roads are very nice, with sensible speed limit. And there's a lake every 2 mins All accessible, free to swim in etc. Definitely worth visiting.
We're in Torun now, the most beautiful medieval city. Lots of car related stuff to do here so the video should be good.
I went to explore and search for good "Nomad places" on the first day. I've been told about a motocross track so I went to check it out. IT WAS SO COOL!
Of course me being an idiot instead of just checking it out and coming back later with Ruta etc I decided to "just got for a little drive".
It's in the middle of nowhere, I was by myself. Nomad didn't disappoint, this thing is RIDICULOUSLY good offroading. I'm constantly surprised by its ability being a 2wd. It just goes everywhere I want it to. Low weight, enough power, LSD, completely flat floor and no overhangs really make a difference.
It almost completed the whole motocross track, I messed it up because I didn't commit enough before one of the hills. I reversed a bit but then I beached it.
Nobody around, it started raining and I'm surrounded by the rest of the very deep and sandy track.
Thank god for the winch! It was the first time I got to use it but it really saved my ass. I found a tree that the rope JUST reached, the remote control is very cool and convenient to use. I got out of the sand but then still I had to find my way within the track, avoiding the very sandy bits. It was definitely an adventure!
I've also found a massive quarry that is open and unattended in the evenings so expect some great footage!
This place is just amazing for a petrolhead, there's a fully prepared rallycross track which I got to myself for two hours the sum of £40. You can drift as much as you want, no noise limits, no marshalls, just some old dude in a trailer looking after it. It's right next to an airfield but apparently I'm allowed to fly a drone there to film so it's even better. Unfortunately it started raining heavily so we'll have to go there again next week.
An overdue update
:We're in Poland now, video from Lithuania will be out soon but in the meantime you can watch Ruta's family's reactions when I took them out for a drive. You can see how much fun it was, they are all nuts
I had a first car trouble - the dash stopped working. It went all crazy and of course it happened in the worst possible moment, this what my night driving experience was like:
It's actually the second one! First was already replaced FOC by Ariel. So I'm kind of stuck with no fuel gauge for the rest of the trip which sucks. I don't care too much about speedo, I drive with satnav on most of the time.
On the way through Mazury, which is "The land of 1000 lakes" I got in a bit of trouble with Ruta - a friend recommended little detour to see some sights and explore some cool gravel roads. Normally that would be fine but this was the longest driving day so far - 12h, most of it in the rain. We were already wet from the morning and somehow I've found a particularly deep puddle on the way, you can see the video on Instagram. It was hilarious when we got completely soaked but some time later I was in the dog house when the cold kicked in...
This part of Poland doesn't have any motorways, so the progress is very slow, lots of overtaking, villages etc. But it is so pretty! Roads are very nice, with sensible speed limit. And there's a lake every 2 mins
All accessible, free to swim in etc. Definitely worth visiting. We're in Torun now, the most beautiful medieval city. Lots of car related stuff to do here so the video should be good.
I went to explore and search for good "Nomad places" on the first day. I've been told about a motocross track so I went to check it out. IT WAS SO COOL!
Of course me being an idiot instead of just checking it out and coming back later with Ruta etc I decided to "just got for a little drive".
It's in the middle of nowhere, I was by myself. Nomad didn't disappoint, this thing is RIDICULOUSLY good offroading. I'm constantly surprised by its ability being a 2wd. It just goes everywhere I want it to. Low weight, enough power, LSD, completely flat floor and no overhangs really make a difference.
It almost completed the whole motocross track, I messed it up because I didn't commit enough before one of the hills. I reversed a bit but then I beached it.
Nobody around, it started raining and I'm surrounded by the rest of the very deep and sandy track.
Thank god for the winch! It was the first time I got to use it but it really saved my ass. I found a tree that the rope JUST reached, the remote control is very cool and convenient to use. I got out of the sand but then still I had to find my way within the track, avoiding the very sandy bits. It was definitely an adventure!
I've also found a massive quarry that is open and unattended in the evenings so expect some great footage!
This place is just amazing for a petrolhead, there's a fully prepared rallycross track which I got to myself for two hours the sum of £40
. You can drift as much as you want, no noise limits, no marshalls, just some old dude in a trailer looking after it. It's right next to an airfield but apparently I'm allowed to fly a drone there to film so it's even better. Unfortunately it started raining heavily so we'll have to go there again next week. Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff