Plymouth-Banjul Challenge

Last updated
Rally 2004/2005 2005 Plymouth Dakar Challenge.jpg
Rally 2004/2005
Convoy ConvoyminusBlazer.jpg
Convoy
Chris Freestone.jpg

The Plymouth-Banjul Challenge or unofficially the Ultimate Banger Challenge[ citation needed ] and previously known as the Plymouth-Dakar Challenge[ citation needed ], is an annual car event for charity. [1] It is not a race or a competition as its website states. [2] It was first run in 2003 [3] to Dakar and since 2005 to Banjul. It very roughly follows the route of the more famous Dakar Rally, visiting many of the same countries.

Contents

Participants starting in Europe normally must go to Tarifa in Southern Spain. Then the course runs through Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Senegal and finally into the Gambia. The entrants must be driving a car worth approximately £100.

Participants in the challenge are on their own, meaning that no assistance is rendered to motorists in case of a car breakdown or even if they become stranded. [ citation needed ]

Mechanical reliability is the main obstacle to completing the course given that such vehicles are ordinary road cars and are mostly at the end of their useful lifetimes. Many cars cope very well until they have to go through the desert and then almost all suffer a great deal due to high temperatures and dust. Once the cars make it to Banjul in Gambia they are auctioned for, or donated to, charity. [2]

History and notable entrants

Amongst the many cars that have taken part in the challenge was the fine Peugeot 505 family estate that went on to be auctioned at the end of the rally for several times the amount of money it would have commanded back in the UK. The 2006 rally included a 1983 BMW 732i which appeared to be incapable of making it out of England[ citation needed ] [4] but in fact did complete the course; a Fiat Uno which performed fantastically and even pushed the previously mentioned BMW up a mountain[ citation needed ]; some Renault 19s and a VW Beetle [ citation needed ]. [5] In addition a number of 4x4 vehicles regularly enter ranging from quite reasonable vehicles that 'bend' the entry rules to vehicles over 40 years old rebuilt from wrecks just for the challenge.

The 2004 event had one team, The Idiots Abroad, tow a trailer with two motorbikes on it through the desert - the challenge has now been laid down for another team to get a trailer through the desert and in 2006 two ambulances made it across.[ citation needed ]

In the 2004/2005 event, a Swiss Team (Team Pintpullers) drove a Mercedes Van and a 125cc motorbike from Switzerland to Banjul. The Bike was ridden the entire time and reached Banjul where it was donated to the local police.

There are even people who cannot drive taking part with one half of a Fiat Uno team learning to drive in the desert where he managed to crash it into a Welsh Ambulance and two Canadians who bought a manual car in France and spent the next few weeks learning to drive it.[ citation needed ]

Since 2007, the rally also has a group of cars continuing on to Bamako, Mali. [6] The 2009/2010 Banjul Challenge was called off by its organiser Julian Nowill due to Mauritanian security concerns (French tourist murders and Spanish aid workers kidnappings), but two teams from group 1 and three teams from group 3 pushed on regardless.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dakar Rally</span> Off-road rally raid

The Dakar Rally or simply "The Dakar", formerly known as the "Paris–Dakar Rally", is an annual rally raid organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation. Most events since the inception in 1978 were staged from Paris, France, to Dakar, Senegal. Security threats in Mauritania led to the cancellation of the 2008 rally, and events from 2009 to 2019 were held in South America. Since 2020, the rally has been held in Saudi Arabia. The event is open to amateur and professional entries, professionals typically making up about eighty percent of the participants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air Sénégal International</span> Airline

Air Sénégal International was an airline with its head office in Dakar, Senegal. It was a regional carrier operating a scheduled domestic network and regional flights to neighbouring countries. It also operated charter and air taxi flights. Its main base was Dakar-Yoff-Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport.

<i>Sahara with Michael Palin</i> 2002 British television travel documentary series

Sahara with Michael Palin is a four-part BBC television series presented by British comedian and travel presenter Michael Palin, and first broadcast in 2002. In it, Palin travelled around the Sahara in Northern and Western Africa, meeting people and visiting places. The journey route included the following countries and territories: Gibraltar, Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Senegal, Mali, Niger, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Ceuta, Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mongol Rally</span> Intercontinental car rally

The Mongol Rally is an intercontinental car rally that begins in Europe and ends in Ulan-Ude, Russia. The rally originally ended in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. However, to avoid punitive costs and taxes associated with vehicle imports and disposal, the rally now passes through Mongolia and ends in Ulan-Ude. The principal launch is from Goodwood Circuit in the United Kingdom, with subsidiary starting points in the Czech Republic. There are three fundamental rules to the rally:

  1. Rally vehicles have a 1200cc engine limit, but ideally under 1000cc
  2. Rally teams are unsupported
  3. Rally teams need to raise at least £500 for charity
<span class="mw-page-title-main">Budapest-Bamako</span> Charity rally raid event

The Budapest-Bamako or Great African Run is a charity car race in Africa, and the largest amateur rally in the world. It is a low-budget version of the Dakar Rally, and goes from Budapest, Hungary to Bamako, Mali through the Sahara. It passes through Hungary, Austria or Slovenia, Italy, France, Spain, Morocco, Mauritania and Mali. The Budapest-Bamako was inspired by the Paris-Dakar Rally. There are few entry restrictions: as long as a vehicle is street legal, it can join the event.

A banger rally is a rally in a scrap or low value car on public roads. The event is a non-racing variant of banger racing. A banger rally may also be a charity rally where the teams taking part in the event also raise money for charity. Banger rallies chiefly appear to be a United Kingdom-based phenomenon and most involve driving through Europe to various destinations where the cars are environmentally scrapped, sold or auctioned for charity. Some events have a limit on how much a participant can spend on buying a car or the size of the engine. Participants in the events often decorate their vehicles with the stickers of sponsors or customising to a theme from popular culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trans–West African Coastal Highway</span> Planned highway in West Africa

The Trans–West African Coastal Highway or TAH 7 is a transnational highway project to link 12 West African coastal nations, from Mauritania in the north-west of the region to Nigeria in the east, with feeder roads already existing to two landlocked countries, Mali and Burkina Faso.

A charity rally is a charitable event in which participants usually drive, ride or otherwise participate in through the medium of motorised wheeled transportation in an event to raise money for a charitable cause.

The 2008 Dakar Rally would have been the 30th running of the annual off-road race. The rally was to start in Lisbon, Portugal on 5 January 2008, running through Europe and Africa until the finish in Dakar, Senegal on 20 January. The event was cancelled one day before the intended start date, due to concerns over a possible terrorist attack aimed at the competitors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australasian Safari</span>

The Australasian Safari was an off-road motor sport racing event held in Australia between 1985 and 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rally raid</span> Long distance, multiday, off-road racing

Rally raid is a type of off-road motorsport event for automobiles and motorcycles. Along with shorter baja rallies, rally raid constitutes cross-country rallying. Both the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) co-organise a common World Rally-Raid Championship featuring the same events for both types of vehicle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2005 Dakar Rally</span>

2005 Dakar Rally also known as the 2005 Paris-Dakar Rally was the 27th running of the Dakar Rally event. The 2005 event was 5,565 miles (8,956 km) long, began in Barcelona on 31 December 2004 and passed through Morocco, Mauritania and Mali before ending at Dakar in Senegal on 16 January 2005. The course was shorter than in 2004 but was more challenging. A record number of competitors, 696 cars, motorbikes and trucks in total, entered the rally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michel Périn</span> French rally navigator (born 1957)

Michel Périn is a French rally navigator.

The Qualification for the 1996 African Cup of Nations took place in 7 groups of 6 teams each, with the top 2 teams from each group progressing to the tournament. Nigeria and South Africa qualified automatically, as champions and hosts respectively. Qualification began in September 1994 and ended in July 1995.

Groupe Air Sénégal, operating as Senegal Airlines, was an airline with its head office on the property of Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport in Dakar, Senegal. It operated a scheduled network in Senegal and neighbouring countries from its main base at Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sy Thomas</span>

Sy (SLY) George Thomas is a British TV presenter, stand-up comedian and actor.

This page details the qualifying process qualifying for the 1992 African Cup of Nations in Senegal. Senegal, as hosts, and Algeria, as title holders, qualified automatically.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Africa Eco Race</span> Northern Africa annual rally raid

Africa Eco Race is an annual rally raid, organised in France and run in North and West Africa, launched after the cancellation of 2008 Dakar Rally, and the subsequent moving of the rally to South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Hunt</span> British endurance and rally driver

Harry Hunt is a British endurance and rally driver, and son of billionaire Jon Hunt. In 2016 he became the youngest British driver to take part in the Dakar Rally, finishing in 10th place out of 110 cars. He has participated in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC), winning the IRC 2WD class championship in 2010 and 2012.

References

  1. "About Us - Banger Rally, Plymouth Dakar, Banjul Challenge, Timbuktu, Morocco, Banger Challenge, Nouakchott, Banger Rallies, Murmansk - Dakar Challenge 2015".
  2. 1 2 "Banjul Challenge - Banger Rally, Plymouth Dakar, Banjul Challenge, Timbuktu, Morocco, Banger Challenge, Nouakchott, Banger Rallies, Murmansk - Dakar Challenge 2015".
  3. https://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/news_features/2003/dakar_rally.shtml "Wacky racers head for Sahara", BBC News
  4. "Short History". www.brothersinmission.com. Retrieved 2020-05-29.
  5. Easterby, Fiona (2020-02-10). "crossing the sahara in a £99 car". DriveTribe. Retrieved 2020-05-29.
  6. "History - Banger Rally, Plymouth Dakar, Banjul Challenge, Timbuktu, Morocco, Banger Challenge, Nouakchott, Banger Rallies, Murmansk - Dakar Challenge 2015".