My mate Stuart and myself will be taking part in this next Plymouth to Banjul Challenge leaving the UK on the 9th February 2006. For those that are not familiar with this event, a summary of the challenge is as follows.The ChallengePurchase a left hand drive car for 'around' £100 and drive it from the UK to Banjul in the Gambia where the vehicle is auctioned (selling for up to 1000% of the UK purchase price) and ALL proceeds are donated to local Gambian charities. The route takes us through France, Spain, Morocco, The Sahara Desert, Mauritania, Senegal and finally into The Gambia. The official website is
http://www.plymouth-banjul.co.ukHere are a couple of short paragraphs taken from a letter from one of the organisers at the Gambian end.
"We took a decision early on to turn the vehicles into money rather than donating them directly. This was based on awareness that no organisation is going to say 'no' to a vehicle but very few will have the wherewithal to put fuel in it or keep it on the road. Additionally, an easy come – easy go mentality will mean that it just gets driven into the ground and then abandoned. By having auctions we ensure that it is people with money that buy them and, having put their hand in their pocket, they are more likely to be motivated to maintain them and use them well. It is fun for me to spot some of the vehicles still on the road that came down with the first challenge.
We end up with happy buyers of vehicles, happy organisations that have money donated to them and most special of all, when we turn your vehicles into money we get to put Gambians in the driving seat as to where it goes. Almost all the aid and donations that come down here is decided by people in the North who often are totally unaware of what is needed. We see some spectacular blunders that create dependency or corruption which are always well intentioned but often ill-conceived."We’ll be attempting to complete the challenge in a diesel Peugeot 405 estate and raising substantial funds for those in need. While what we are doing will directly benefit the local Gambian Charities we are hoping to collect additional sponsorship for "Care for the Wild International". Care for the Wild International (CWI) is an animal welfare and conservation charity. They protect wildlife throughout the world from cruelty and exploitation. By funding practical projects, they make areas safe for wildlife, rehabilitate sick or injured animals and provide sanctuary for those who cannot return to the wild.
The RequestIt’s time to ask for your support by means of sponsorship and/or donations, Savvis Communications (the company we both work for) have pledged to match the final total that we raise. Both charities are very worthy causes of our efforts and donations so would ask you to please give generously. The best and easiest way to donate is online at
http://www.justgiving.com/teamsas . If you or your company would like to sponsor us directly and get some advertising on the car please get in touch. We are also in need of some equipment to help with the journey and increase our chances of getting there (jerry cans, sand ladders etc.) so if you have anything that you feel may help please let me know
Cheers all
Simon (and Stu)
