Our goal, in the Mongol Rally, is to raise a minimum of £1000 for charity and anything over that target would be amazing as every penny would go to help people all over the world that are stricken in poverty and hunger. The entire event is built around raising money for Mongolia and the charities that work there helping those less fortunate than us in these Western chapters of Earth.
After many hours of deliberation and discussion, a team name was decided upon. One that a certain wonderful young lady named Olivia Morrad suggested. A play on words and yet an apt name for our team, it is ‘MetalrallykhaR’. We have also recently acquired a vehicle for this event, a Daihatsu Terios. There are certain rules and regulations that dictate what vehicles can be used, down to engine capacity, age and other such restrictions that need to be stringently adhered too hence our choice in this vehicle.
The team is to consist of 3 males all ready for the adventure of a lifetime. The team members are: Daniel Beaumont, Shaun McElhinney and myself. We have all been friends for nearly a decade so for all of us this is not only an adventure but in my opinion, a unity of friendship as brothers. We are to trek across some of the most beautiful yet tough terrain this planet has to offer having nothing but our wits and common sense to guide us because after the one and only check point in the Czech Republic, we are on our own until we reach Mongolia.Upon arrival in the distant city and land, we are to go our separate ways. My friend Dan is to return home to his life in England where his family, friends and beloved will be waiting and where his career will be beckoning for his arrival.
My good friend Shaun and I are to continue our adventure into the unknown by carrying on this adventure. We have decided that due to both of us having no commitments at home other than family, friends and loved ones, we are going to forge forwards and continue our exploration of the world knowing full well that those we love at home will offer nothing but support and love along every step of the way.
As yet our plans are but a glimmer of realisation but we are planning to catch the train along the Trans-Siberian Railway and work our way back to the West crossing through more beautiful and yet highly unendurable terrain. The final destination of this train is St. Petersburg in Russia. Once we have finished this mammoth train journey we shall cross the land into the Northern countries of Finland, Sweden and Norway, before working our way towards returning home. Although, this of course depends how our plans, moral and finances hold up on this voyage. Yet this is our dream, our conquest, our chance to be like the explorers of old, to take on what life has to throw at us and to live our dream of seeing the world.
For my own personal feelings on this, a door has truly been opened. This is a voyage of both body and mind. Leaving those that I hold nearest and dearest in the world behind and setting out for a period of time that is not only outside of my comfort zone but will remove me from the modern world and thrust me into one where I must fend for myself and my team. This opportunity will give me the chance to learn of new cultures and people, to see the world in a different perspective, to expand my somewhat naïve understandings of the world within which I am a mortal resident. I will meet new people, experience things that I would never have dreamed of and most of all I will be starting the journey of life that I have longed so much to do.
I cannot thank my friend Dan enough. He may well never know just how much of a opportunity he has given to me, how much I will be indebted to him for pulling away the anchor that has had me held to my life of routine for so long. It could not have come at a better time nor will such an opportunity come along again like this, least not in my eyes. This is our time for all 3 of us to take our friendship and carry it with us as we cross plains, Climb Mountains and work our way through boarder crossings from the UK all the way to Mongolia and back. I can also not thank my friend Shaun enough too. He has been a stable and caring friend for many years and if our dynamic as friends were not so strong then the idea of carrying on would not even have been thought of. Together, the 3 of us, will create and be a team that will confront any obstacle, overcome any problem and most of all, we shall be united at all times through friendship, love and brotherhood.
My only concern for this adventure lies at the cause of a lot of my anguish in this society and that is monetary worry. Both my friends have a considerable amount of financial backing behind them and although I am going to be working my fingers to the bone beforehand to achieve this goal, it is a problem that will only fade as time draws nearer and I can assess my financial status. But this will not stop me. Not in any way. For if I have to plunge myself into debt again for this voyage, this conquest to become a reality, then I will stop at nothing to achieve that.
I know that I will miss all those that I love and care for. My family and close relatives will know that each day I will think of them as my eyes behold a new part of this world and I will wish that they, with others close to me, were there with me to see it all. But for those people that I cannot take along, that cannot be there to experience an awakening of their own, I shall be updating not only my blog here, but also our team site too, MetalrallykhaR.com.
For now there is much planning and work to be done. Next year has a range of adventures to come, from an early jaunt to Spain with a person very close to my heart, a return to the beautiful site that is Metalcamp in Slovenia and finally onto the adventure that will shake my world and take me half the way around this globe, the dawn of something beautiful has begun and I am tingling in anticipation.
