In 2012, Ben, Ravi and Harvey did the Mongol Rally. They were Team Infinity and Baatar, and we were definitely the best team :p Only Joking, but we did have an amazing time, and I’m re-posting the rally blogs so that others can get a glimpse into how good it was and hopefully other upcoming teams can get excited about what they are letting themselves in for.
Seriously, if you are doing it, it’s quite possibly the best experience you’ll ever have! Ready my other posts on car prep and practical tips (will upload throughout the year).
So…what’s the plan?
Put simply Ravi, Harvey and myself are planning to drive from Britain to Mongolia in a Nissan Micra in the name of charity and adventure!
You seem to be glossing over a lot there! Do explain…
The Mongol Rally (which is not really a race, as the aim is to spend as much time as possible on the journey and arrive within a ~3 week window) is an event run every year to raise money for charity. Armed with a small car, a crude knowledge of geography, the ability to speak slowly and loudly (whilst pointing) and a love of winging things, we have the purpose of getting from the UK to Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, by any route possible.
Ok, that’s what you’re doing. Who are you going with?
Harvey, Ravi and I have all worked together over the last few years. In practical terms, there can be few finer people to drive 8,000 miles across the globe with! We have established that there is plenty to take the mick out of in each other, so there is no risk of getting bored on the journey. As mechanical knowledge is undoubtedly hereditary, Harvey is well placed to handle any automotive issues we encounter. Furthermore, Ravi is a wizard with data analysis – we are undoubtedly set for glory!
Err…indeed. With an open remit, what route did you choose?
With some fairly simple facts and a bit of razor sharp logic we sorted our route out pretty fast:
- The car doesn’t float – this ruled out cutting down across Africa
- Neither we nor the car are bullet proof – this ruled out going through the Middle East
- Our passports undoubtedly have too few stamps – this ruled out a mono-country drive straight through Russia into Mongolia
- Kazakh roads are not brilliant – this makes non direct routes through neighbouring countries far more appealing!
This quickly established a path through Ukraine, Russia, miscellaneous ‘Stans (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan), back through Russia and into Mongolia as the only viable route!
Why are you doing this?
One afternoon I was getting rather concerned that my repertoire of anecdotes is getting rather stale and was looking for something that would generate lots of stories…well, that’s not totally true! After spending years reading accounts of folk doing strange and unbelievable adventures (pulling a sled across the Antarctic, walking around Ireland with a fridge, voyaging around the Pacific on a tramp steamer, travelling across Afghanistan on foot and so on) I really fancied doing something like that myself – so when Harvey got the tickets, I couldn’t really say no!
Do you have any particular aims?
Aside from the obvious target of arrival…I’ve long wanted to try and fry an egg on the bonnet of a car – so I’m packing a spatula (and possibly something to clean the bonnet)!
Tell me a bit about the charity that you’re supporting?
Banter aside, I’m using the Rally to try and raise money for Alzheimer’s Research UK. They are a research charity that funds research into cures, tests and preventatives for all causes of dementia. The effects of Alzheimer’s disease have been particularly brought home to me, as I have seen several of my family members become afflicted with dementia. As a degenerative disease, it’s particularly upsetting for both the people who have it, and their families, to watch the mind and memory deteriorate. My hope is that with advances in medical science this disease can be cured and prevented for future people.
If people want to support you, is there anything they can do to help?
We are going to hold a charity raffle – and are on the look out for prizes. If you have any unwanted Christmas presents that you want to subtly dispose of, or can help provide prizes that would help grab people’s interest (or gambling spirit) we would love to hear from you! Alternatively, we have set up a Virgin Money Giving page for donations to the team’s charities (http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/tiab) – any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks for your time and good luck!