The Beijing to Paris 2024 book

Beijing to Paris

After the successful book on the 2019 Beijing to Paris rally, there is a new book on the 2024 rally. During a recent interview with Patrick Debusseré, we talked about his latest trip and, of course, this fantastic book.

With a few years’ delay, the 8é Beijing to Paris rally was able to start in 2024. After collecting the cars on 16 May, scrutineering took place on 17 May.

For some teams, it is an entirely new adventure, for others it is simply replacing the 2019 plate with the new 2024 one. Not that the rally is all that obvious and certainly never the same as the previous edition. Read something about the previous edition? Read all about the 2019 book

Discussion of the teams

Beijing to Paris

The book contains a spacious chapter on the teams, so each car is discussed in detail as are the drivers.

Rally with obstacles

In theory, the rally was supposed to be run every three years, i.e. 2019 and then 2022 but because of covid and the war between Ukraine and Russia, it did not happen then. Also in 2023, covid was apparently still an uncertain factor in China and 2024 was chosen, the book of which we discuss here.

An edition will also go ahead in 2025, and if all goes well, another edition will take place in 2028. This is to get back into the rhythm of a triennial edition.

Beijing to Paris

When I asked Patrick if this edition was now more beautiful than the previous one, I got the following answer. Every edition is unique and whether or not it is more beautiful depends on the perception of the person experiencing it. According to Patrick’s feeling, it was definitely more adventurous. There was a bit less variety but it was more intense and technical. Bottomline is that it was actually more fun. We were a bit more on our own which did make the whole thing feel more adventurous.

Completely different route

For the most part, the 2024 edition followed a completely different route from previous editions. Those previous editions all ran fairly parallel.
Roughly speaking, the 2019 edition ran from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia before passing through Novosibirsk in Russia. The 2019 edition then detoured past Astana in Kazakhstan before heading back into Russia towards Kazan, St Petersburg. Then through Finland into the Baltic States before riding through Poland and Germany towards Belgium and ending in France’s capital, Paris.

The 2024 Edition had been laid out completely differently for well known reasons. It was that or no rally. The route in 2024 ran from Beijing through Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Greece, Italy, San Marino before entering France towards the finish in Paris.

Mongolia was excluded due to a three-day quarantine, this still due to delayed covid measures. The route was fixed in 2023 and at the time, this had to be taken into account.

From east to west through China

It was the first organisation ever to trek from east to west across China for 14 days. It was a real revelation for the participants. China has huge cities that all look almost identical. In every city you come across similar buildings, usually around 50 skyscrapers of about 25 storeys each.

The rural population has migrated en masse from the smaller villages towards cities. The result is that you now effectively see ghost villages where just not a living soul lives anymore. Driving through these villages feels rather alienating anyway.

In the countryside, there is now mainly industry. The road infrastructure between the cities and industrial areas is rather poor and consists mostly of gravel. These roads are mainly driven by trucks, sometimes in columns of 25 one after the other.

Technically, this edition was tougher on the mechanics than the previous one. Since the route was now about 1000km south, there was an additional factor of heat. One car burned out completely and a Porsche 356 caught fire up to three times. Fortunately, we were able to put out three fires. A fourth time didn’t risk the pilots.

Logistical challenges

There were also a few anecdotes logistically. For instance, at one point an overnight stay was planned in the tent camp as we sometimes do more often. However, there was now so much wind that everything flew away. The organisation then rushed to find a hotel with sufficient capacity to accommodate the entire group. So they managed to get a closed hotel opened in such a way that everyone could still have a decent night.

Polly

During the previous edition, we had broken a leaf spring. So we had reinforced that even more now. Of course, by doing this you actually shift the problem to the next weak link. So this edition, Polly had two wheels where the spokes came off. Because of the firmer suspension, the windscreen cracked in two places and also the engine mounts cracked in a few places. But all in all, we haven’t actually had many breakdowns.

The Book

According to Patrick, the book is an upgrade over the first edition. The first edition was designed by a British agency and therefore I had to stick to the format imposed by them. However, that first book was a great success as it was even reprinted. The organisation also noticed this and for the second book I was given carte blanche.

It was designed with Mathieu Damien of The Mad House, who organises rallies himself and is also an automotive photographer. This time, two photographers travelled along, making the range of high-quality photos much greater than at the previous edition. Add to that a professional photographer as a participant and you know things will be fine in that respect. There was over 10000 high-quality photos to choose from. Anyone who has both books will see that serious progress has been made in this area. Not that the first book was not good, but on a photographic level, this second edition is simply better.

The Daily Journal

Most participants knew about the previous book. One of the more enjoyable pieces from that book were the daily journals. These pieces were really taken from life and told by the participants themselves. The enthusiasm was even greater for this and so we have now collected no less than 57 stories. The stories are more varied and also more comprehensive.

Each book comes with an individually numbered bookmark with a picture of a particular team. I have e.g. book 188 out of 300. As a Belgian, I obviously chose the really limited ‘The Brave Belgians Limited Edition 2024’.

So again, there are two versions. The Official 2024 Beijing to Paris Book and The Brave Belgians Limited Edition 2024. The books now count 414 instead of 396 pages and have a fold-out. Both the soft and hardcover are also printed identically, giving the book an even more luxurious look.

Ordering

Both editions can be ordered from the official website www.peking-to-paris.com. The price for this beautiful book is €159; For the special The Brave Belgians Limited Edition 2024, I would not wait too long as they are almost sold out.

Will you be riding again in 2025?

bluepassionphoto.com
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When I asked Patrick if he will participate again in 2025, I heard doubt and at the same time eagerness in his voice. The doubt is mainly in the fact of getting Polly all ready again. A year seems long but in terms of preparation time, it turns out to be really short. In rallies like this, you prefer not to leave too much to chance. The desire is definitely there and I haven’t said no yet, Patrick told us. So keep an eye on Facebook. You can usually find the latest developments on there.

Photo credits go to https://www.willbroadhead.com/ and Francesco Rastrelli – https://www.bluepassionphoto.com/. My thanks for allowing us to use their images.

The Beijing to Paris rally is brought about by the Hero-Era organisation