CHARITY rally has been hailed a success – despite malfunctioning sat navs and run-ins with Continental cops.
Teams of amateur rally drivers set out from Swindon on the Barcelona Bangers rally – 1,400-mile trip to Barcelona in beaten-up bargain basement cars.
And, although they are unlikely to raise all the money they wanted to combat muscular dystrophy, team leader Aaron Phull, a 26-year-old software worker, said it was a success.
The group travelled by ferry to Calais, through Paris, Le Mans, Tours, south across the Pyrenees and into northern Spain.
“We got a bit lost as we came out of Paris,” said Aaron, of Somerdale Close, Westlea.
“We had a sat nav, and while it was perfectly good in the UK, it wasn’t so good in France. It took us to a different Tours.
“I think we were a bit over reliant on technology.
“We got pulled over by police for speeding. They were really, really polite, really nice, they knew we were obviously lost.”
And the decorative missiles he put on the roof of the car didn’t help.
“We went into Calais on Thursday, and we thought we’d get into trouble. One of the guys stopped us but all he wanted was for his colleague to take a photo.”
On arrival in Barcelona, Aaron and the team gave the car away to a Spanish waiter.
“He seemed to like it,” he said. “But he did take the keys before he saw the car. It was in good state. The engine didn’t really skip a beat. We all got so attached to it we didn’t want to give it away.”
They had been aiming to raise £5,000, but Aaron said they had lowered their sights to a more modest £3,000.
He said: “We’re still counting the money. I think we’re up to about £1,100, and the target we aimed for was £5,000. We’re just going to keep on going.
“It doesn’t really matter whether its five grand or one grand. I’m really pleased we got the money we did.”
About 60 teams took part in the rally. Aaron was leading a team in a 14-year-old Volvo V40, which cost just under £500, and of which he was the sixth owner. His friend Carl Jackson travelled in a £215 bright pink Saab 9000.
The three-day rally was an attempt to raise thousands of pounds for research into muscular dystrophy, which affects Carl’s 28-year-old brother Ben.
They set off on May 19, and arrived back in England the following Wednesday.
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