The WRC ending that starts a new chapter

There's a big pile of logs at the side of the road. Petter Solberg sets the car up and jabs the brake. The Volkswagen Touareg slides briefly before he gathers it up and continues. One of his passengers has written himself a note, mentally, in capital letters. The other has spilled his cup of coffee.

Oliver Solberg is the note taker. Autosport is the coffee spiller.

Every now and then this job gets you places you have no business being. This is one of those moments. We're in the back of the car listening in as the 2003 World Rally champion introduces his teenaged son to Wales. They're here testing, filming... and learning, before the father-and-son combo tackles Britain's round of the 2019 WRC in a pair of Volkswagen Polo R5s.

"What do you think when you see a pile of logs at the side of the road?" asks Petter.

Oliver, don't stress, we've got this one. "Harvesting," is offered from the back seat. "Chopping trees down."

Petter looks slightly exasperated, then does the thing with the brakes. "No. You must be quiet," he says.

Fine by Autosport, busy mopping the flat white up now anyway.

"When you see the big trees lying at the side of the road, it means the grip will be changing in that place. It means the trucks have been in there moving the logs about and they can make a lot more mud when it's wet."

Yeah, all of that. And harvesting. Fortunately, sensibly, Oliver has no intention of listening to Autosport. Why would he, when he's currently tuned in to a four-time Rally GB winner?

Anybody starting Rally GB for the first time is keen to download somebody who's been there and done that. But for Oliver, that advice is special. In the history of the event, only Sebastien Ogier has won GB more times than Petter. And, with 15 starts in Britain under his belt, 'Pappa' is worth listening to.

"It's not an easy rally," says Petter, getting all parental and serious in Oliver's absence.

"He has to do a lot of work in the recce, he has to really try to understand where the grip changes are and what the surface can mean. It takes a long time and even now you can so easily be caught out when [the grip level] can change completely from one corner to the next.

"He needs to be looking where the road's under the trees, where the sun is, will it dry?

"Remember Goodwood [Festival of Speed, below]? I talked to him a lot about the corner near the stone [flint] wall. It was humid in there. I told him 100 times, 'Be smart there, it will not dry and it will be tricky...' But he came in full sideways! In Wales, there will be so many places to catch you.

This week's about more than just Oliver's arrival in the WRC. It's also about Petter's departure as a frontline professional driver. It's the end of one chapter and the start of another

"So much of the work for him and Aaron [Johnston, Oliver's co-driver] will be done on the recce. It's absolutely vital that he has his eyes completely open and looks for everything in the recce. I have Phil [Mills, co-driver] with me - he's one of the best in the world. I'm lucky to have him again."

Oliver's back and immediately tunes in. He doesn't interrupt. He just listens, takes it in.

"America has been a good place for you to go and compete this year," says Petter. "You only get one pass on the recce out there, so it makes you look for everything all the time. Pacenotes are always so important, but here when you get into the fog, they are everything. That's why it's good to make them a little bit safer. If you have safer notes you are not going to be losing too much time and you can commit to them in the fog."

Petter's phone rings. "Safer notes?" we ask Oliver.

"He means don't make the big risk with the notes," says Oliver. "Don't look at a corner and think, 'Maybe I could just about get away with that in top gear...' Slow the note down just a fraction to give yourself some margin. For my first time on a rally like this, that sort of thing is so important. I have to do this."

Every now and then, you lose Oliver. This is one of those moments. We're standing looking out over the beautiful Welsh countryside. But all he's gazing at is the roads.

"I drove these roads so many times on the WRC game," he says. "I grew up watching videos of my father driving here, competing here, winning here. Honestly, it's really a bit of a dream just to be here in these places."

And what's it like to live that dream?

"The roads are incredible," he says. "So much fun. You can carry a lot of speed, a lot of momentum in the car. I just love it. When you drive on the computer game, you are trying to think, 'What will it be like? Will the car do this or that? How will it be?' And to come and feel the car doing everything I hoped it would, it's amazing. And so cool to be here with him [Petter]. He's my hero.

"So much of this year has been building towards Rally GB and my first time to drive ever in the World Rally Championship."

This week's about more than just Oliver's arrival in the WRC. It's also about Petter's departure as a frontline professional driver. It's the end of one chapter and the start of another.

"It's special to be driving with Oliver," says Petter. "You know I will still drive, I'll always drive, but this is part of my Farewell Tour. This is my chance to say goodbye to the WRC in the right way and with a good car."

Oliver's Polo will run as car #54, with his father one place behind.

"Being next to him on the road will be good, at least for the first day," says Petter. "It means I can help a little bit. We can talk between the stages and, if he's struggling with anything, then I'm there for him."

Oliver grins. "And we can compare the times..."

Petter laughs: "I remember the first time I drove in the WRC. It was in Sweden, 1998, and the step from the lower level of rallying was huge. The rally was longer and harder and you will find this in Wales too. The days are long. From the recce it's tough and, because you are working so hard and focusing so much, you can get tired. Then you go to bed and have maybe four hours' sleep or something like that. It's not so easy."

Wife and mum Pernilla is the glue in Team Solberg. She's the eye for the finer detail, the first to arrive in the morning, the last out at night. As a former successful driver herself, she knows what her boys are going through.

"I'm so proud of them," she says. "They are so close, so together. But at some point, Petter will have to put on his crash helmet and let Oliver get in his car and drive. That's tough."

Don't misinterpret that. Neither Petter nor Pernilla are remotely pushy parents. Oliver did the deal to drive with Subaru Motorsports USA this year all by himself.

"Honestly, the first we knew about it was when he came down to ask us about a visa to fly to America to test the car," says Pernilla. "Oliver wants this so badly and all Petter and I do is support him. OK, we can give him some advice and guidance, but rallying has been his whole life until now and I can't see that ever changing."

Petter Solberg is one of this sport's true characters. A genuine legend. And having him in Llandudno will make this a truly special week. Enjoy 'Hollywood' for one last time. But while you're there, embrace the future too. It's Oliver's turn now.