The world of cars might appear to be largely a male preserve, but Caprices Events of Switzerland has thrown a spanner in the works by creating the Rallye des Caprices, a competition exclusively for women. The motto for this fourth edition was “Toys for Boys stolen by Girls”. Clearly, you don’t have to be a man to be a petrol head!
Unlike France, which has several women’s car rallies, Swiss has just the one, but it’s a good one. “It’s not just a regularity rally,” explains Nathalie Lepoutre, the event organiser. “Although it is a genuine challenge, it’s also intended to be friendly and fun; the participants have to live and breathe it,” she continues. “Over the years the rally becomes like a family, and that’s very important to me.”
In order to enable the competitors to recognise each other en route, for the first time she asked the teams to give themselves a name. Some of them took the name of an association or one of their sponsors, others made them up, and some were inspired by the colour or make of their car.
Durable partnership
Girard-Perregaux has been a partner of this sporting event since its creation, and was present again for 2018. Unlike previous years, however, the brand did not have a team in the race. Instead, the watchmaker decided to equip the wrists of the drivers and their navigators with carefully selected timepieces. All of the participating cars also had a sticker featuring the brand logo.
Rêves Suisse helps to make the dreams of sick or disabled children come true, and show them that “when you succeed in doing something you thought was impossible, you can keep going,” as one of the organisation’s representatives explained. The charity has been supported by the Rallye des Caprices for three years. This year for the first time, Rêves Suisse was part of the event organising committee. A sticker bearing the message “Je roule pour Rêves Suisses” [Editor's note: “I’m driving for Rêves Suisses”] was also on all the competing cars.
A colourful event
The 4th edition of this 100% female Swiss car rally was blessed by fine weather. The event provides participants with the opportunity to have fun with girlfriends and to see the country from behind the wheel of a classic car (built before 1988), but it also gives competitors the chance to discover a different part of Switzerland each year. In 2018 the majority of the route went through the Ticino region.
On Tuesday 18 September the Capricieuses lined up in their handsome cars, without phones or GPS, and set off with just a 223-page Road Book to guide them. The race began at the Montreux Casino. Participants from Switzerland, Belgium, the United States, Great Britain and Luxembourg set off for Leukerbad before turning towards Lugano on Wednesday. On Thursday, the 18 teams stopped off in Andermatt before heading into Gstaad on Friday.
What was the organiser’s verdict? “For this 4th edition we had to tighten up the rules, because the competitors were getting faster. But despite everything, this year was even more amazing than last!” What is the secret of its success? “A team of professional, respectful young men who compete year-round in the WRC, magnificent stages through the heart of the Swiss landscape, and top-notch organisation,” she says.
Queens of Caprice
At the finish line in the Bernese Oberland, Girard-Perregaux presented each of the winners with a Laureato Chronograph created especially for the occasion. This sporty-chic automatic timepiece in a two-piece limited edition comes with a 38 mm steel case and features a black and white panda dial with a Clous de Paris motif. It is fitted with a pale blue rubber strap in the colours of the rally, and it has a special engraving on the caseback.
Girard-Perregaux presented the watches to the Swiss “Racing Mafia” team, who scored quite a coup by winning not just the entire race but also the Special Prize. Second place went to the Franco-Swiss team “Les Speedeuses” and the third prize was awarded to French team “1, 2, 3 Sol’Elles”. The traditional Elegance Prize was won by the Franco-Belgian team “Les Dames de Coeur” and the Prix Caprices went to the Franco-Swiss Vallat Racer team.
During the rally, the competitors stayed in luxury hotels, where they were greeted each evening with a variety of gifts from the event sponsors.
Laureato Colors for the summer
The watchmaker also took the opportunity to present its Laureato Colors models, which were unveiled this summer, in five colourways, available with matching rubber strap or steel bracelet. Although all the models come in a steel case topped with a diamond-set bezel, they have different movements depending on their size. The 34 mm pink and turquoise models are driven by a quartz movement, while the 38 mm purple, blue and yellow watches are equipped with an automatic mechanical movement.
The quartz models are priced at 9,300 Swiss francs, and the automatics cost 14,400 francs.
