Micra climate trio Have drive
Rally pals raise loot for MND research
A trio of pals are gearing up for the adventure of a lifetime in the name of charity by driving almost half of the world’s circumference in a onelitre car.
Husband and wife duo Chris and Jen Johnston-Marr, and Marc Tracey, are taking part in the Mongol Rally in aid of My Name’5 Doddie Foundation and Cool Earth.
Under the team name ‘Yes We Khan,’ the trio will embark on a six-week expedition, travelling 10,000 miles from Troon to Mongolia via 23 countries.
They’ll plough through some of the world’s wildest terrain during the event in July.
All this – and with no support from the Rally’s organisers – in a tiny red Nissan Micra, named Monte.
The Mongol Rally is an intercontinental car rally which sees drivers set off from Europe, in vehicles with engines under 1.2 litres, ending in Ulan-Ude, Russia.
It has been moved from the original finish line of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, due to vehicle imports and disposal costs.
Chris, 27, a theatre technician from Ayr currently working on Les Miserables, admitted the rally is “completely bonkers”.
He said: “When we booked it, we were all stuck in lockdown and feeling stuck in life.
“I just decided I wanted to take control of where we can go, and just head off to do something completely bonkers.
“Covid-19 has impacted us all in many ways, and no more ways than feeling like we’ve been stripped of freedoms – to travel, to explore, to live life in our own way.
“We want to prove to ourselves, and hopefully a wider community, that we can do anything we set our minds to – and we can pull this off, even with the extra logistical paperwork Covid-19’s introduced to travelling.”
The team want to raise funds for My Name’5 Doddie Foundation in aid of Motor neurone disease (MND) as cousins Chris and Marc’s grandmother died from the disease when they were kids.
Marc, 29, an officer in the Merchant Navy, said: “We chose MND5 because our gran passed from MND.
“I played rugby for Marr before working offshore and love the game.
“There are so many rugby players suffering from MND and we felt that it was the best charity to help raise awareness due to the celebrity status of some of those suffering, including the charity’s founder Doddie Weir.
“The more people we can reach, the more money and awareness we can hopefully raise to find a cure.”
Jen, 26, also a theatre technician currently working on Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, echoed Marc’s thoughts and added: “It was an unwritten necessity that if we were going to do this, we were doing it for MND.
“We believe that Yes We Khan find a cure.”
And as well as MND5, the team will also be coining it in for the rally’s official charity, Cool Earth.
Chris said: “Given that COP26 just took place in Glasgow, it’s a prominent issue facing the planet right now.
“And as members of a team driving a petrol motor one third of the planet’s circumference, it only seems fair to raise awareness and take responsibility for the planet.”
Yes We Khan have planned the route they will be taking, which includes travelling south through Romania, Turkey and Iran, but will also rely on trusty old paper maps when out of reach of phone and GPS signal.
And they have also made a list of all the extra equipment they will need to pack to patch up
Monte should it break down or run into trouble.
Marc said: “We have spare tyres, a spare radiator, oil, fuel filters and we have spare brake pads too. We also have some Haynes manuals and assortment of tools to help us repair the Micra if and when the opportunity presents itself.”
Chris said: “There’s a lot of seasons, altitudes, road conditions and no roads. It’s going to be a bit of a ‘prepare for
Yes We Khan find cure for MND , Yes We Khan fight climate change. We have to do both of these things together .. that is why we’ll travel 10,000 miles on the Mongol Rally
Jen added: “If we can fit it in our little Micra, it will be coming!”
Yes We Khan have secured sponsors from Leatherman UK, Halbro Sportswear, Raging Bull Sportswear, and Simple Sign Solutions to help make their rally dreams a reality.
“Sponsors – financially or with physical goods – make it possible for us to go on the rally at all,” Jen said. “After we secured
Leatherman UK as our first major sponsor, it became very real to us. Suddenly we had reasons that weren’t personally driven.
“Companies are relying on us now to go and it gives us that extra push to make it across the finish line for them.
The team are also keen to see others spur them on and donate to their charities.
Jen added: “In terms of donations to charity, that is why we’re doing it. That is the whole point.
“Every financial donation to our charities go directly to that charity through our JustGiving pages.
“Yes We Khan find a cure for MND. Yes We Khan fight climate change. We have to do both of those things together.”
Follow their journey on Instagram and donate to their cause at: https://www.justgiving. com/fundraising/yes-we-khan1