Thank you Total !

Got a luvvley big parcel from the Post Office this morning which, on inspection, revealed a nice little selection of goodies for us to use in raising money for our challenge,such as a fleece,some adventure packs and a 1:18 model of the Renault F1 car signed by the drivers of the 2007 season.


This is another classic example of a company using it's initiative, so although it was not possible for Total to sponsor us for the cost of our fuel during the drive, they have still helped us along by way of the donation of some branded items for us to raise some cash with.


In complete contrast to some other fuel companies who could not even be bothered to say NO ! (no names mentioned, but they are M*rco and T*xaco !).


Total can congratulate themselves on being the most thoughtful of the companies that we have contacted regarding fuel sponsorship, and the goodies sent will definitely help us to complete our challenge.So well done Total, and the others?, 1/10 see me !

I had something of a reality check today

It's a funny thing, but i was so wrapped up in all of this Scirocco 2 Morocco stuff that i almost (but not quite entirely!) forgot that i had leukaemia !. I suppose its because i keep my head so full of things to do, people to speak to and emails to write, that there was not much time to do the mundane stuff like consider your own mortality.....then my dad told me about an appeal he had heard on BBC Radio Nottingham earlier today and it gave me a reality check as to one of the reasons myself and Glen are attempting this drive.

The appeal was made by a young lad,6 years old to be precise, and he was asking the listeners to save his life. The sad thing was that he is amongst approx 16,000 people who are currently waiting for a bone marrow transplant to attempt to cure them of diseases such as leukaemia, and he was there, in a radio station appealing for someone to step forward and do the most honourable and magical of things...try to save him.

Donating bone marrow is not such a major thing as i was (as are most folk) made to believe.The hardest part about the whole procedure is finding the match, that special someone who is able to provide an incredibly special gift to a person that they may never have ever met before in their lives, and to me that is the saddest fact.That the "special" person could pass you in the street, live next to your home or even work alongside you, but unless they take courage,step forward and offer to be tested....they may never be found.

Joel Picker-Spence is pleading for his very life.Imagine just for a second it was your son,brother,nephew or friend,surely it is not to much to ask someone to take a simple blood test and possibly,just possibly give the greatest of all gifts....the gift of life.

This is the link to his story in the Newark Advertiser. Could you be that special person ?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/nottinghamshire/7575051.stm

http://www.newarkadvertiser.co.uk/template/temp1.asp?id=978f6493-b5a7-102b-9d57-3047d247ecca

Scirocco2Morocco at RAF Cosford

As you may have read, this weekend the Scirocco2Morocco team will be going to the Scirocco Registers National meet which is being hald at RAF Cosford.

The meet promises to be a good opportunity to raise a few more funds as well as getting some good photos of the car with others of its type - around 50 cars if all goes well! Hopefully there will be a chance to catch up with Andy about whats been going on although he has covered most things in the vid below I think - sorry to hear your feeling a bit under the weather mate.

There will be plenty to see on Saturday 23rd so why not come down and check it out?

And now...a short video blog (Actually it's rather long !)

Oh no, the X-Factor is back on the box :-(. So it was straight outside for me, and time to do a little "to camera" work. Sorry about the ramblings, but this was all "off the cuff" stuff, and as anyone who knows me will tell you, i can talk (or moan !) for England if the mood takes me.

The video is a little long at just over 25 mins due to me trying to cram all the info into it in one go.......funny, it didn't seem like i was waffling for such a long time :-)

Anyway.If you can manage to stand listening to my inane ramblings for the first 12 or so mins i will then give you a tour around the car/trailer and explain a little about some of our key sponsors......that good eh ! lol :-)

Scarlet goes to Sheffield to visit the Tigers

On Thursday myself plus 3 mad children (yes they are mine !) went on a short hop over to Sheffield to pay a visit to the home of the Sheffield Tigers, the Owlerton Stadium. We were met on arrival by Neil Machin, the owner of the speedway circuit, and after a short chat we parked the car up on display and then spent 3 hours completely enthral ed at our first experience of watching a speedway event !.A very good friend of mine, Sean (a fellow hospital walla) had arranged the visit, and he and his wife and 2 children made us feel most welcome as we enjoyed a drink and later some luvvly chips and mushy peas/curry at the food counter/restaurant.

The master of ceremonies announced our event later on during a break in the action, and at the close of the meeting myself,Sean and the kids gave out about 100 flyer's to visitors as they left.
Special thanks to the very nice man on the gifts counter (sorry, but i can't remember your name !) who gave us several stickers to put on the car, amongst them was my favourite "Speedway riders do it sideways"....:-)

South East departure set for Bluebell Hill....

I have been hard at work this week plugging away at various contacts to try and sort out a decent send off for the Scirocco2Morocco adventure. It looks like the local press are now on board, with a few local papers and journalists interested in covering our departure. I have even had some interest from local TV, although this is not confirmed yet.

The plan is that after Scarlett leaves the classic car show, she will head down to the Bluebell Hill Picnic site near Rochester - where Andy and Teresa completed their 'Roc-around-the-clock' challenge last year. Hopefully we will be all set for a grand send off by 5pm, by the press, friends and a few representatives from Macmillan.

Its all getting closer now, not long to go..............

And now a few words from Dick..........

Received this the other day from non other than that really funny fella Richard McCourt from the hit kids CBBC TV series "Dick and Dom in da bungalow".

It's great to get the involvement and support from well know celebs like Richard so we'd just like to say a great big thank you to him for this promo for our event. Oh yeah, just one more thing to say really........................................"Bogeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee !" :-)

Thanks Richard :-)

1 Month to go.....so much to still do !

Well it's now the 8th August and that means that we now only have around 1 month to go before we set off on our challenge.
Over the last few days i have been seeking more assistance from both local and International companies, and at this moment in time i am waiting for confirmation on a few possible leads. I spoke to a fella from the Lincoln CO-OP on Monday who seemed sure that he would be able to rustle up some sort of help through their travel service, so that would be a most welcome source of assistance, also i spoke to a lady from Vodafone based in Newark on Tuesday, and she was looking into the possibility of helping us to stay in touch during the journey by way of providing us with a couple of sims that would allow us to make free calls for the duration.I hope that this particular lead comes good as it is a major feature of our journey that we can chat to the press,family and well wishes whilst on the road, and of course these days it may also allow us to get online and keep our blogs up to date.I did take the car around to the Vodafone offices, and made a point of the fact that the red that adorns the Scirocco is almost the same shade as their logo sports..well you have to push your benefits don't you :-)
I have also been in touch with SNCF the french rail and (apparently !) ferry service,they have replied to my email and have forwarded my request for their assistance in crossing to Morocco to the relevant people although i have learned during the course of arranging this trip, never count your chickens until they have hatched !.
I also sent an email to Shell and Texaco(the fuel companies) a couple of days ago to ask if they would consider assisting us with our fuel expenses...no word so far, but these things sometimes take time to filter through the corporate systems.
A friend of mine at the hospital (Sean) has also managed to source us some last minute coverage of our event at the Sheffield Tigers Speedway arena, so on Thursday night next week we will be appearing (one night only !) at the venue.Hopefully at the very least we can spread the word to a few more people, and of course there is always the chance that we can secure some last minute sponsorship also...that would be nice :-).
Glen called the other day to tell me that the guys over at the Phirm (VW Specialists) had offered to give the car a going over to identify any possible problems before the off....trouble is that they are over (or down perhaps ?) in Kent, and I, and the car, are up in sunny Lincolnshire, so getting it down for them to work their magic on could prove a problem.....need to think about options on this issue !.
On the 23rd August there will be the first National meeting of Scirocco Owners at RAF Cosford. It's called the National meeting, but in actual fact we are expecting quite a few of our fellow Scirocco enthusiasts from over in Holland ,Germany,France and other parts of the EU.In fact i am sure that i heard that we may be getting visitors from as far afield as Australia, although, as you may appreciate, he will not be in his car :-)
More details about this event can be sought at the Scirocco Register website forums here : http://www.sciroccoregister.co.uk/

Celebs to see off Scirocco 2 Morocco Challenge

Just got some information this week that the Annual Sleaford Classic and Vintage car show is hoping to boast some celebrity faces to help send us off on our challenge on the 6th September.

Apparently the well known TV meteorologist,weatherman and vehicle enthusiast Bill Giles, top TV Chef James Martin and Top Gear Presenter and journalist James May are all looking to attend, so i will have to get my autograph book out and give it a dust down maybe ! ....although if they want our autographs, myself and Glen could always sign a copy of one of their books for them :-)

We have now been asked by Heron Volkswagen if it would be possible for us to attend their launch of the New Scirocco, which just happens to be taking place on the 18th September, the day that we are due to arrive back in the UK and complete our challenge.

Details of the show can be found here: http://www.shcms.sleafordevents.co.uk/

Yesterday (Saturday) i took my three kids out for a small trip (!) over to Manchester.The reason ? Well we have at long last managed to locate a matching set of alloy wheels to fit to the trailer. Many thanks to Peter and his family for looking after us when we arrived, and also for the "extras" that he has donated to our challenge, namely shock absorbers,radiators,fans and even a spare carb !. Once again it has been members of the general public that have shown exceptional generosity in helping myself and Glen achieving our goal.....shame that some of the bigger companies that we have approached don't appear to be anything like so helpful....you know who you are !

You know, If i got a pound for every time someone on the A1,M62,M1 either pointed at us,took pictures or simply stared at our rather unusual rig as we made our way up to Manchester the other day,then myself and Glen would probably not need to travel 4000 miles to Africa and back to raise this cash for our worthy causes..mmmmm,now that's a damn good idea !

BBC Coverage of the challenge 27/07/08

10th Anniversary of Air Ambulance crash

Tomorrow will mark the 10th Anniversary of the Air Ambulance crash that killed three crew members in Burham, not far from where I live.

On the 26th July 1998 the helicopter struck power lines and crashed in a field in Burham killing its crew - pilot Graham Budden and paramedics Tony Richardson and Mark Darby. It was the only fatal accident in the UK involving an Air Ambulance.

The picnic site in Burham where the 'Roc-around-the clock' challenge came to a close last year was dedicated to the 3 crew who lost their lives.

A tribute service is to be held today at Rochester Cathederal to celebrate their lives.

Rest in peace chaps.

Link

Heron VW fix gearbox selector & local school donates money

Those awfully nice people at Heron Volkswagen have yet again proved what a thoroughly decent lot they are after taking the car in on Tuesday and fitting a new set of gear change linkage bushes !.
The old bushes appeared to have completely worn away, and this would explain why i was having great fun trying to locate first and second gears whilst driving. After Paul Stanney had identified the problem, he wasted no time in getting the parts ordered and the job completed.
Heron have been fantastic supporters of Scirocco 2 Morocco, and myself and Glen would just like to pass on our thanks (yet again !) for the help that they have provided over the last year or so.

Also, I would like to thank all the staff and Kids at Our Lady of Good Counsel school who today (Wednesday) donated a cheque for £50 to Leukaemia Research.The youngsters had paid 50p each to come to school in "civvies", and Mr Weldon, the about to retire headmaster, very generously donated the proceeds of civvies day to one of our charities.
The kids also got a chance to have a good look at Scarlet and her trailer after they went on display in the playground for a while after lunch. Thanks to the kids for asking me all those awkward questions...i just wish that i had some better answers for you !.....must do some research :-).

Wow...how busy ?

As mentioned in a previous post I had a bit of "a do" with a snapped clutch cable the other week. That is now sorted after Glen posted me a new one which arrived a couple of days later and is now fitted to the car.....jobs a good 'un !.
This week saw S2M's first outing into the big world of TV...well regional TV news, but still TV !. After ambushing Rob Sissons (BBC East Midlands Today) at a recent event at Kings MilHospital, and then sebsequently emailing him a few times, he phoned me on Monday morning to ask if it would be alright to pop over to mine and shoot some footage for the Sunday Afternoon news (not quite the news 10, but hey, from little acorns and all that !).
Rob arrived at approx 15.45 and after a brief chat we went into filming first an interview, followed by a few shots of me "messing under the bonnet" (ooeeerrr missus !) for him to use when he got back to the "cutting room" (getting all the TV jargon now you know !)......probably cut the ruddy lot :-). Anyway, this was followed by a drive around the local roads so that he could get some "in car" (a la Top Gear Stylee !), and some video of me driving the car along the road. The funniest part was when a local farmer took interest in Rob whilst he was lying down on the ground just in front of this guys field entrance, complete with flourescent jacket and large "professional" camera. "What are you up to then ?" was the question he asked of Rob, to which he politely pointed out that he was in fact lying quite legaly on a public road...and what did it have to do with him anyway !. The words "Get off my land" were,apparently, not spoken :-).
After about an hour Rob got off and it was " a wrap".....see, told you I was picking up the lingo !.

The story is due to be aired on the East Midlands Today news on Sunday PM.....unless something more interesting comes along !...just hope that Sunday is a boring day :-).

Thanks to AutoStyle......but more sponsors wanted !

The latest sponsor for S2M is now AutoStyle Bespoke tailored car mats.We received the fantastic tailored mats for the Scirocco the day before the Waddington Airshow, and they really are a great bit of kit !.
Anton and his team have made a wonderful job of producing not only mats that fit like a glove to the Scirocco's footwells, but also bear the S2M logo on them to boot !.Clips are supplied to facilitate a more secure installation, but to be honest the fit is so good that i never bothered to put them on !.
Many thanks to all at AutoStyle for a great (and practical) addition to our list of helpers as we prepare for the start of our challenge within the next 7 weeks (6th September).

If you know of (or maybe have contacts too) any companies that may be able to help out with the completion of our challenge please feel free to get in touch with details. We still have room on the car and trailer for company logo's, and we can also offer links to your websites as an added bonus :-)

We still need help with:

Telecommunications (mobile comms during the drive)

Ferry crossings between Dover/Calais and Spain/Morocco

Breakdown cover (Just in case !)

Petrol costs...getting higher by the day :-(

Any other aspects of the journey that we may have overlooked.....probably !

As always you can also make donations to any of our 3 charities via our online donation page at:

www.justgiving.com/scirocco2morocco

Come on !...and help us to help others :-)

Scirocco Scala....now with semi auto gearbox.....

It was bound to happen really !. Today was the last day at work for a week or two.Paul at Heron Volkswagen had emailed to say that the bushing for the gearbox selectors had arrived and was ready to be fitted at the earliest opportunity.

The sun was beating down,traffic was light, life was good and I was now on my way home after a short detour to pick up an anniversary card (Our 20th !)...then "CRACK"...and the clutch cable ceased to operate !.

After sticking on the hazards, and pulling over on the side of the road approx 10ft away from the entrance onto a very busy roundabout near Ollerton (I sure pick good spots to break down !). I decided that to prevent causing an obstruction to other traffic (And to prevent the chance of some huge HGV from shortening the Roc's rear end !)I would push the car up onto the kerb......not an easy job when trying to dodge fast moving cars with inattentive drivers at the wheel, and the small problem of a kerb that must have been at least 6" high !.

After a few goes I somehow got the car half way off of the road and then began the job of investigating the problem, which (to make a long story very brief!) involved dismantling the underside of the drivers dash and having a gander at the end of the clutch cable. This was not too difficult as upon removing the panels, the end of the cable dropped onto the floor !.....not a good sign as it was not attached to the rest of the cable which can cause problems when pressing the pedal :-(.

After diagnosing the cause of the failure i now had to figure out a way of driving the 33 miles back home minus clutch.......mmmmmm !

My journey home was interesting to say the least.Approaching roundabouts required a new approach, namely snatching the gearshift out of gear, coasting along and trying to ensure that my arrival at the said roundabout coincided with a Scirocco sized gap in the traffic.This was achieved in 90% of cases, but on one occasion a frantic stirring of gears, erratic braking and numerous prayers did the trick !.I was also attempting to contact Glen and Rachel to see if they could bid on an Ebay item that i had been chasing for the last week (a set of matching Alloy wheels for the trailer) , this auction was about to close in the next 10 mins and i would not be home to put a higher bid on as i was currently nursing the car back to Sleaford !

We got outbid, but i got Scarlet back home by 8PM...then found that i was locked out of my home due to the wife going out to pick the kids up from a party...Oh bliss !

The photo's below illustrate the broken cable, and the damage to my shoulder that i attained whilst pushing a 1000 KG car up a 6" Kerb.

Anyone got a spare clutch cable ?