Rebels in a 'Festy' drive to Mongolia
A MALLOW man is among a group of Rebel warriors driving a staggering 10,000 miles from London to Mongolia in a Ford Fiesta in aid of the children's charity Barretstown.
Paul Glavin from Spa Glen, Mallow, along with fellow Corkonians Brian McKeown and Adrian McLaughlin began their epic Mongol Rally journey on Saturday in London and expect to arrive at their desination in September. The Mongol rally is not for the faint hearted and considering three men will be squeezing themselves into a nine year old Ford Fiesta with a 1200 cc engine it has all the ingredients for a fun adventure.
The only rules for the Mongol rally is that it must be completed in a city type car, less than 10 years old, with an engine no bigger than 1300cc and no backup crew.
For the next five weeks, the trio will be putting their foot to the pedal to get through Turkey, Iran, Russia and will eventually arrive at Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia in September. Mixed into the fray will be 200 teams from across Europe, Canada and America.
The Corkman managed to catch up with Paul before he boarded the Cork Swansea ferry last Thursday and he said the trio were "ready for road."
He said their feisty Fiesta has been completely revamped down to the last nut and bolt. The men have yet to name the car, but they plan to come up with a worthy name.
The trio are covering their own airfare and accommodation expenses and once they all get back on Irish soil, the car will be auctioned and all money raised will go to the Barretstown charity, which helps children affected by cancer.
The fund-raising drive has caught the eyes and ears of businesses and recently EPS in Mallow donated "a substantial sum of money" for equipment for the three men. Other major contributors were Motorway Parts & Accessories and Automotif Tyre and Service Centre.
Paul said that he is well aware that the road terrain would be "rough" to "non existent" in many countries, but they were looking forward to the challenge and in particular raising as much money as possible for Barrestown.
The Corkman will be keeping tabs on the trio as they travel the highways and byways of 16 countries over the next five weeks. In addition, they set up a website www .rebe l - warriors.com, so readers can read their blog, post a comment or donate some money to Barretstown.
- MARIA HERLIHY
