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*** Taken from Team Radio Silence *** ***** 2009 Mongol Rally teaser video ***
Mongol Rally was started in 2004 when few Englishmen, during one lucid moment in a pub,
...decided to try to drive to Ulan Bator in their Fiat 126P
After few years this idea became the biggest road trip adventure in the world.
This year more than 400 teams signed up.
The only rule is to get to the finish line in a small car, up to 1,200 ccm.
This is the base of the entire adventure. It is not the point to do it in SUV.
Mongol Rally is charity race, organized for the benefit of the Mongolian charities.
Teams cars are donated when they reach Mongolia. So far, more than 1.5 million pounds were raised.
This year rally starts in London on July 23rd, or Prague two days later.
Then by chosen route you have to reach Ulan Bator, typically in 3 to 6 weeks,
...driving through deserts and steppes on worlds' worst roads, or, at times, without any roads at all.
The biggest challenge, at least for me, will be camping since I don't like sleeping in cold. :)
And on the way there, after you pass Iran if you take southern route, or Russia...
...the roads start to disappear and the car should be able to go on for few thousand kilometers.
Most people take their own camping gear and after few days when they reach a town with a hotel,
...they sleep there, take a shower, send pictures and blogs over internet and then go on.
The only rule for the vehicles is that it engine should be up to 1,200 ccm.
To make their adventure even better, Team Rockrs choice is Serbian national car - YUGO!
Is the old YUGO going to survive the 15,000 km road trip... well, they say there were even less hopeful cars.
First car that finished the rally was Fiat 126P, and even teams in "Trabant" took part.
YUGO is actually good for such trips since there aren't that many fine electrical parts which can fail because of the bad fuel or dust.
It can basically just break apart, but it has good ground clearance.
...so with some floor protection and better shock absorbers, it should eventually make it.
Six weeks road trip will take them trough 15 countries,
...including Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
Everything will be recorded and shown on Mongol Rally movie festival.
We wish Team Rockrs good luck. They are going to need it!