The Border Patrol Italian Run

Oooh. I have a few (he he) pics ready.

Here you go.

The MG cars visited the lesser marque of Ferrari



and we tie wrapped David to a signpost



Next was the Ferrari museum



and I tried to get a souvenir, but it was well glued on.



Surprisingly, they had a fair few bits of cars in the museum, mostly to do with Ferrari.





Our new Italian friends escorted us around the museum, making sure we didn't steal anything.



and Tracy did some seductive poses over the engines. Ah, hold on, I think I promised not to post that one. If she asks, just pretend you never saw it.



The old Ferraris were a nice bit of history





and Daz was very nearly attacked by a steward who appeared from nowhere as he passed within 2mm of one of the cars.



Anne touched up a cardboard cutout



There was a strange Ferrari boat that looked like a cross between a Batman prop and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.





Tracy managed to park one of the Ferraris in a corner



David and Sheila were caught fondling a horse.



in the main display



But, personally, I liked the modern cars.





I've seen my next brake conversion.



But I'm still not sure about the perspex engine covers.



Another Ferrari



and my favourite







We may have even spotted the first TT prototype.

:woohoo: Great photos Clive and what a wonderful commentary, :bust: I even found myself reading it with a Northumberland accent. The poor Italians probably couldn't understand a word you were saying. I know the Canadians found it difficult :lol:

Great photos and suntans :yesnod:

I think I was in the lead at one point on the suntan stakes, but it washed off so Jamie won.

Here are some more pics.

The team arrived at the top of Stelvio Pass after a "short" drive to get there.







And we made a new friend.



The money shot



and....errrr.......







Some lovely ladies posing by my car



And me and Anne

Clive and David, both have excellent pictures. I so wish that we were there with you, it looks like a great, fun trip. Now that I know some of the participants I KNOW it was a fun trip, especially if Tracey was there.

PQD44 wrote: The poor Italians probably couldn't understand a word you were saying. I know the Canadians found it difficult :lol:

I thought he had a speech impediment :whistle:

My lithsp or my touretts?

What's that? More pictures you say?

OK then. It would be rude not to.

We gathered at Luino for a drive around lake Maggiore

http://goo.gl/maps/GZkxh





Tracy prepared the bears



We devised a cunning plan



and then we were off on our epic journey.



but it was hard work, so we stopped for a beer and a coffee at Arona to keep us going.

http://goo.gl/maps/YnNND at bar imbarcardero.



and practiced my pole dancing



We then headed off to find somewhere to eat and drove around a bit





Before stopping at Cannobio for a lovely evening meal.

At Hotel Cannobio http://goo.gl/maps/Tnjja

Thanks for sharing these, It looks like a great trip.

We met up in Dover...





And some went in search of a cannon...





The following morning we all queued up and waited our inspection before boarding the ferry...





We waved goodbye to the White Cliffs...





And enjoyed the view upon arrival in Calais...





On the way to Dijon, we stopped for fuel...





And after several hours arrived at the Campanile...







We set off bright and early the next morning and once again stopped for fuel and a bit of map checking...







A quick stop....







And then some more driving through the worst weather I have ever experienced, before eventually arriving at the villa....

The next day (Monday) most of the group went to meet with a group of Italian MG owners... unfortunately I didn't make it due to the untimely splitting of one of my coolant hoses I abandoned my car at the top of the road, but it made a very good marker when people turned up back at the villa in the dark!





The following day, most of the group went to the Ferrari museum with the Italian MG owners.... I stayed back at the villa with Maggy and Phil and enjoyed chilling out and revelling in the view from the balcony...






On Tuesday I was liberated by Maggy and Phil when I went with them to collect their courtesy car and afterwards we went for a walk along the lake to find somewhere to eat...





On Wednesday Tracy and Daz went off to the UPS depot to collect a parcel containing my replacement hose and Clive and Dan fitted it for me later in the afternoon...







Sadly my car was playing silly buggers and didn't want to be bled and time was of the essence, so all removed parts were chucked inside for the night....






Although I was a little worried the ants might set up home inside... thankfully they didn't seem clever enough to notice the hood gap behind the back of the window...





Weds night we went out to celebrate Anne & Clive's Silver Wedding Anniversary





And then Thursday was 'Pass' day - we went on St Bernard Pass, Splugga Pass and Stelvio Pass (and I'm pretty sure there was another, but I can't remember what it was called)... Unusually for me I was able to actually enjoy the scenery and take photos for once seeing as I wasn't driving...



































On Friday morning Daz was tasked with taking his turn at bleeding my car and finally I was back on the road!!

Some of us went off on a run around the lakes...










We had a coffee and cake stop... before carrying on around the lake...








On arriving at the market, Tracy and Anne spotted the wine stall...





While Larry and Johann tried to catch Clive who had disappeared into the tunnel...




After wandering through the market, it was time for food...





And then we headed off back to the villa ready to pack our bags for the morning departure...





In the morning, Clive and Daz took it upon themselves to 'repair' the fence...





After refuelling, there was a quick stop for Jamie, Phil and Johann to do some treasure hunting...







Then after a little fun in a lot of tunnels, it was time for the daddy of all tunnels and we waited our turns to enter Mont Blanc...









And a re-group on the French side...





Maggy wielded her magic bite spray....





While some people just couldn't resist the lure of the cones...





On the way back to Dijon, Clive and Phil couldn't help themselves and became Border Patrol Mobilers when they helped bump start a car...




After an overnight stop in Dijon, it was back up to Calais where our ferry was awaiting us... and where the sea gulls were more friendly than some would've liked...





Back in Dover, a few farewell drinks were consumed...





Whilst Iain chased the birds with his big stick...





The End

Epic! Thanks to all pic posters and for the commentary.

Here is some idea of the rubbish we had to put up with.