PORK PIE CHARITY RUN
TAKE THESE MINIS TO INVERCARGILL
Driving from Dunedin to Kaitaia can be challenging at the best of times, but to do it in cars ranging from 40 to 60 years old, then turn around and drive all the way back to Invercargill, can lead to all sorts of problems.
Team Kelly hails from Dunedin, and, on 19 April this year, it joined approximately 60 Minis in Kaitaia for the Easter
Pork Pie Charity Run fundraising tour, following the route taken by the original car in the Goodbye Pork Pie movie.
The father-and-son team of Mike and Josh Kelly travelled in Josh’s Mini 1000, while his mum Julie travelled in her Mini LE Clubman with co-driver Irene Benfell-herron, who had even further to travel from her home in Te Anau.
Amazingly, Team Kelly raised $11,024.67 for host charity Kidscan, with the total amount raised for the organization by the Pork Pie event a whopping $289,834.
The trip was not without its dramas for the team, with repairs needed along the way, but the one near Omarama was major: a carburettor fault nearly put paid to their chances of “takin’ this bl**dy car to Invercargill”.
“We were very lucky when rally people came to our assistance when a spring broke in the Mini’s carburettor and it left the jet needle loose. Thanks to Phil Deane, who fixed it, we were back on our way in about an hour and a half,” Josh said.
With the delay, they missed the trip into Highland Motorsport Park in Cromwell but managed to join the rest of the rally into Invercargill, ending with a noisy tour of the city centre.
Entrants in the Pork Pie Charity Run pay their own way, so the effort required to get to the start is a big one, and that’s before participating in the run itself. The entrants from Bill Richardson Transport World — father-and-son team Scott and Cameron O’donnell, along with Cameron’s partner Amelia Munro — had even further to travel in the museum’s East African Safari Mini.
The run was a great way to celebrate 60 years of this trend-setting little British car. Team Kelly would like to thank everyone who supported them for the run, and all those who so generously donated towards the charity.