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Why? |
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I had a
heart bypass operation on 26th April
this year and wanted to support the
hospitals and their charities once I was
well enough again. I have been taking
part in long distance car trips and
rallying for many years and my elder
daughter Jenny was keen to join me. |
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How did you
plan it? |
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On a rally
several years ago we visited three of
the places, so I used a gazetteer to
find many more exotic sounding places
within mainland Britain. They had to be
towns or villages likely to have some
sign or other that we could record as
proof of passage on our way round. We
didn't use satellite navigation as they
sometimes take you on roundabout
journeys between locations. We relied on
maps. |
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Did you
get any sponsorship? |
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This was not
easy to get and as a back stop plan we
planned to use my own car if one could
not be loaned by a dealer. Guildford
Mazda came up trumps and we are grateful
to them for all the time and effort they
put into helping us. We drove a Mazad6
Tamura. Several local companies made
donations. |
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How did
you manage for food and drink?
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Previous
experience helps a lot here. No proper
meals en route, only regular snacking on
fruit and energy bars. We ate energy
bars, bananas and the occasional Mars
bar or Twix. We took lots of fluids -
water, orange drinks, coke etc. Red Bull
donated some of their energy drinks, but
we hardly had any -we did not need them.
All this was stored in boxes behind the
front seats so they could be reached on
the move by the co-driver. |
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What
about tiredness? |
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This must be
treated very seriously - we passed many
signs warning about the hazards of
tiredness when driving. However with
practice and experience one can drive
for long periods without any problems,
especially when eating and drinking
properly. Cat naps help enormously to
refresh the body. |
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When did
you have comfort breaks? |
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These were
taken when we stopped for fuel. |
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Does
Lions Clubs Insurance cover an event
such as this? |
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No cover is
provided for the use of a motor vehicle
- see MD Directory page 176. However
this is a very important issue for
events using cars on the highway. Most
people's routine cover for their own
vehicle also excludes cover for
competitions and trials, rallying and
racing. This event was carefully
promoted not to be one of these and was
agreed as such by my own insurer.
However in the end Guildford Mazda
arranged the insurance through their
company policy. |
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Would you
do it again? |
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Probably
yes, but I already have two major events
planned for next year, so maybe in 2009. |
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