Bang goes Juan

It�s not often that one pulls up on the hard shoulder of the motorway and the crankshaft pulley � formally part of the engine � rolls up alongside in the slow lane�.

Our first thought was �great we may be able to retrieve our engine�s recently lost friend!� Seconds later the large HGV drove over the crankshaft pulley and made it significantly less useful. With hazard lights blinking we donned our lovely high vis jackets, and started to take stock of the situation�.

Whilst travelling at 60mph at a reasonable distance behind a lorry a piece of debris suddenly came into view. It was probably metal and about one and half feet long, there was no time to avoid it and we went straight over it. BANG! Soon after, the engine stopped and we coasted to halt. Our obedient crank shaft pulley and various belts (which had lost the fight with the debris) bounded along behind and stopped next to us. After the Lorry had smashed them to pieces, I waited for a gap in the traffic and retrieved the potentially dangerous debris. This included the sheared off bolt, which used to hold our crank shaft pulley in the correct place.

Claire and I soon realised that this was gonna be very expensive! The initial bang hinted as much, and further inspection confirmed that the prognosis was unlikely to be good. The crankshaft pulley drives various belts, including the cam belt. We knew that losing cam belt and engine timing was bad and potentially a new engine! We were both in shock and rapidly realising that our road trip could be ending early, with our beloved Juan (the van) being written off. However, we had a more pressing issue of what to do in the immediate future.

We called a friend (thanks Trish) who got on the web and soon found a local company to tow the van. An hour or so later we arrived at the VW garage in Segorbe (North of Valencia). No one spoke any English, so things were difficult to say the least. The guy lift the bonnet, shone his torch at the Sorry looking engine and said �Muy, Muy Malo� � which we clearly understood as �very, very bad!�. Normally, this is a bad situation if it happens to your car in the UK. However, this had happened in Spain to a vehicle which is essentially our home. It�s where we sleep, cook and it houses our bikes, clothes, climbing gear and loads of belongings � a logistical nightmare!

We called the insurance company and started to ride the emotional and frustrating rollercoaster of sorting this mess out. We spent the next two days parked outside the VW garage next to a noisy main road. Not a great van spot, but better than leaving our valuable bikes and shelling out for a hotel. We had two bad nights sleep and spent the days getting thoroughly bored in the uninteresting town of Segorbe. We spent a lot of time chasing the insurance company and worrying about how to resolve this mess.

The insurance company are trying to worm out of the claim; they are claiming �wear and tear�, even though it was an accidental impact that caused the damage. We are now just waiting to see what happens.

Fortunately, our friends Lucy and Simon are absolute stars and have put us up in their lovely motor home for a few days while we await the outcome with the insurance company. We have moved on to Albaracin (two hours from Segorbe) where we are enjoying some bouldering.

It is unlikely that we�ll be able to afford to fix the van now, so we will probably send Juan home on a transporter lorry. We have decided to get a cheap tent, send home surplus stuff and carry on the trip in less luxury. We will be far less mobile, but plan to visit similar places to Simon and Lucy, so can share fuel costs and catch rides. We will mainly focus on the larger spots (Margalef, Siurana and Ceuse) and spend longer at each.