188 THE SCHEME IS DEAD, BOYS...

So goodbye to 227 and hello to 60... or rather, 17. Confused? Let me explain. As I detailed in this post, getting the original design (number 227) made and fitted would, as they say in the trade, be a faff. It needs to bend three ways on the bonnet and fit around the wing mirrors. Can be done, but wouldn't be easy or may need compromising the design.

I found an alternative design (number 60) that isn't as striking as the original but is more on-brand and clearer. The magnets also fix to big, flat parts of the car, which makes it easier to produce and fit - something that will help when we are in an underground garage in Freiburg, feeling slightly hungover and disoriented.

Like the original scheme, this new layout was plastered all over a Scalextric 'slot car', so we are still on brief. I went hunting for more images and found that some mad Czechs had used it on a real-life car (number 17) they had prepped for a rally. Not only that, the car was white, so I could see exactly what it could look like - see below.

To me, it looks better on the number 17 car, as it stands out more and is in keeping with the Martini Racing tradition of running white cars with their distinctive livery liberally splashed across them. Although it isn't my first choice, it is starting to grow on me.

Best of all, I sent the new design to the guys at Colour Create, and Barry replied, confirming that it looks easier to produce and fit. <phew>

They were still waiting on a template for the Abarth, so I asked them what they needed to see if I could find something. They require a scalable vector file so they can zoom right in and make everything millimetrically correct.

A quick search turned up a free file that may fit the bill, which I sent over. Kevin replied that it was "almost perfect" and that he would have a look at the design.

We are another step closer to getting the car decked out. It is starting to get real again, like after we booked our hotels and received confirmation that we had rooms in a foreign country on specific days - scary. Once I get this sorted, we just need to book the rest of the hotels... contact New Start to get them onboard from a charity perspective... get the car to the garage for a complete shakedown... and on... and on... and on...