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Published: April 17th 2015
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Fair warning, this first post will be a little cheesy. I'll cut that s**t out after this. I've mentioned the idea to a few people across those years, and as you can see, I meant it. I know I'll look like a bit of a tulip if we don't make it past Surrey, but hey, the die is cast. Roll on May 1
st 2015.
So I like travelling. Caught the bug in 2001 through the BUNAC exchange program, spending a glorious, heady, eye-opening summer on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, hand-making fudge in huge copper cauldrons. The people I met, friends I made and things I saw, I will never forget. I
have forgotten how to make fudge.
It wasn't enough though, and that trip did teach me that most important lesson: If you want to see the world, all you need to do is step out of the front door. Adventures follow. Factor in the sacrifices that previous generations have made for our freedoms, and the quite astonishing opportunities that are open to most of us, and I pretty much see it as an obligation.
You may know already that I spent a fair few years working on cruise ships, and that I've fitted in my own travel in between contracts. In around 2006 I'd bought an old BMW 5-series from a friend ...... a 1994 model. Big, blue and great for touring, not that I used it for much being away on a ship most of the time. The big idea came to me around that time; basically that it would be a whole lot more interesting to take an ageing car on some wild, one-way road-trip, rather than scrap or part-ex it.
Sadly, the gearbox went while I was away on contract (thanks, Dad) and the BMW was scrapped before I got back. That was about 2008. I couldn't shake that idea though, and at some point in the intervening years hit upon China as a suitable challenge to reach in a banger, with the premise always being that wherever the car broke down, got stuck or collided with a Top gear presenter, there it would stay. The trip home would be planes, trains, pedals or cloven hoof.
So last spring, the death-knell sounded on my next car - a W-reg Silver Ford Mondeo bought in 2012 for £589 - as my mechanic told me it wouldn't make it through another MOT test without major repairs. The engine was sound, but rust was killing the undercarriage. With that information, the car's fate was sealed, and the planning began.
I’d have been happy to do this alone, but company is better, and two similarly well-travelled friends from work have since joined the cause; Dave F and his partner jumped at the chance to come along last July, but when she had to drop out, John R came onboard (with just 10 weeks to go = legend).
I’ll go into the route we’ve picked in the next post, but I should end with this one with some thanks for all of you who have spent time with me on some crazy escapade in the past – you know who you are, and I wish you were all coming along.
David
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Crunchy
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All the best Dave
Hey Dave. All the best mate. Keep in touch.