Well, when the team begins to talk about where in South Africa to hold the celebrations at the end of the trip, it means that the starting date is getting closer. We still have some difficulties with visas and permits. You need at least two passports to get all visas on time… And there are quite long response times in some parts of Africa in governmental offices.
There have been a number of changes to our plans: We have a new team member. Mike Griffith is replacing Marc Bronzel, who had to call off, due to urgent business commitments. Mike is a passionate adventurer from South Africa and is an important gain for our team. He participated twice in Paris-Dakar rally and knows a lot about Africa, so the team will totally rely on him there.
The exact route is still fluctuating, as the political situation in Northern Africa forces us to look for the safest and most reliable solution. The European part of the route and the remaining distance in Africa seems to be arranged and well supported.
The car is being prepared to be in top condition for the long run. In fact, it has been given a complete overhaul and lightened a bit to be more suitable on the non-tarmac roads in Africa.
We are still aiming to beat a few records along the way and will rely on our partners to verify the times officially. For that purpose, we have enrolled a representative of the Nordkapp Visitors’ Centre, the RAC in London’s Pall Mall and the administrators in Cape Agulhas community administration to confirm our progress.
Because of all changes and challenges, the team has a new target start date at the end of April. Due to the unrest along some parts of the route, we will keep the exact date to ourselves until a few days before the departure.
Let’s not forget we are also using the challenge as an opportunity to raise money for a fantastic charity – Farm Africa. Any amount you can give will make a really big difference!
Follow our progress – more news is coming soon…