Wacky racers head for Mongolia

8:51am Saturday 19th July 2008

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More intrepid adventurers from Oxfordshire are geared up to set off today on a 10,000-mile charity challenge - at the wheels of old bangers.

Father and son Steve and Will Merrow-Smith, from Oxford, are hoping a 16-year-old SEAT Marbella, bought on the Internet for £150, will carry them all the way to Mongolia.

And computer software developer Joe Steinhardt, from North Leigh, near Witney, will be joining three friends in a 1977 Hillman Avenger, while Team Swifty, from Bicester - Tom Chettle, 20, and Jeff Pepper, 21 - are driving a £500 Suzuki Swift.

The Merrow-Smiths will be armed with just a couple of old maps, a compass and a tool box to help them navigate through eight countries spanning two continents.

Will, of Rymers Lane, Cowley, said they were amazed to have been picked for the Mongol Rally, which saw more than 6,000 applications for just 300 places.

The event involves driving old bangers from London to Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia. Each team must raise at least £500 for Mercy Corps, a charity providing aid to people living in poverty and areas of conflict.

Will, 28, who works in the subscriptions department of Oxford University Press, said they hoped to reach Mongolia in about three weeks.

He said: "We have been quite apprehensive.

"We have had to make quite a lot of preparations, getting jabs and getting the car ready.

"Now we're in the final stretch, I can't wait."

He added: "The biggest problem will be the roads. Mongolia is a country the size of Europe but it only has 50 miles of paved roads.

"It is no surprise that only 60 per cent of cars finish the rally.

"There is no route, no support crew, no map - it should be fun. But we're determined to finish it, even if it means we ditch the car and hitch."

The rules say that participants must not use a car which cost them more than £500 or has an engine bigger than one litre.

Will's father Steve, 53, a handyman and gardener from Hertford Street, East Oxford, said: "We bought the car off eBay for £150 six months ago. It has cart springs at the back, which although rugged make for a bouncy ride."

To sponsor the pair, who have called themselves Les Mongauloises, go online at www.justgiving.com/lesmongauloises.

Mr Steinhardt, 26, of East End, North Leigh, is tackling the journey with team-mates Graeme Wicks, 26, Sam Vaughan, 20, and Harvey Manns, 20, all from Kettering. He said: "None of us are skilled mechanics, we've just got lots of information on our iPods and help along the way.

"We're told that in many of the countries we cross there are many people who depend on their cars for survival and are prepared to weld any bits together just to make them go again."

To sponsor them, see www.willwemakeit.com/cartrekvoyagers Bicester's Team Swifty have so far raised £1,200 for charity. To sponsor them, see www.team-swifty.com Oxfordshire's other entrants are students James Anderson, 21, and Alex Hill, 20, in a Fiat Panda with an artificial turf roof.