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We are delighted to launch a clothing and merchandise range branded Wacky Rally

We are proud of our achievements to date so felt the time was right to offer a universal range of products at sensible prices to support our loyal customers

Also being a banger rally we felt it necessary within our clothing offer to be more carbon neutral ... so we are very pleased to be working in collaboration with Earth Positive to achieve this goal.

The carbon footprint of EarthPositive®products have been reduced by around 90% through a combination of innovative product design, low impact organic agriculture, efficiency in manufacturing, and by replacing standard grid electricity with renewable wind power.

It has been calculated that a single EarthPositive® Hooded sweatshirt saves around 28 kilograms of CO2e.

Having taken the greenhouse gas emissions to pre-industrial levels, all the EarthPositive® products carry the registered mark “Climate Neutral”.

Our full range can be found at www.wackyrally.bigcartel.com

02/06/2018 - 15:11

Norfolk rally team to make 1,500-mile trip
across Europe in aid of EACH

A Norfolk rally team is set to embark on a 1,500-mile trip across Europe in
an old Mercedes as they look to raise funds for East Anglia’s Children’s
Hospices (EACH).
The NRtoRN2017 team – named after the postcodes at the course’s start
and finishing points – will take part in the Rockin to Rimini Wacky Rally,
which begins in Norwich and ends on Italy’s east coast.
Their 1999 Mercedes C220 will take them across seven countries in five
days, with all proceeds going to EACH’s Nook Appeal. The nook
fundraising revolves around the hospice’s efforts to construct a new
purpose-built facility in Norfolk.
The charity’s proposed build in Framingham Earl would replace the current
hospice in Quidenham, which has been deemed ill-equipped to
accommodate children requiring specialist care.
Team member Alan Kirton, 40, from Thorpe Marriott, expressed the group’s
desire to help the children’s hospices.
“EACH is not necessarily a cause that is personal to any of the team, but
we’ve chosen it because we wanted to give something back to the
community and raise money for a local charity.
“The current facility is sub-standard and it would be great if they could build
a new hospice in the future.”
Provided there are no breakdowns or wrong turns, NRtoRN2017 will begin
their journey in Thorpe Marriott on Thursday June 22 and arrive on Italy’s
east coast on Monday. Cars have to cost no more than £300 and be
‘wackied’ up in imaginative ways.
“The Mercedes has been sat in a farmer’s field for a few years, but it’s in
decent condition.
“Most of the work we’ve done has been on the exterior. The car been
decorated to follow a theme of the rally route, including a picture of Norwich
cathedral on the bonnet.”
The team’s progress during the rally can be followed on Twitter, Facebook
and Instagram; all accounts are titled @NRtoRN2017.​
NRtoRN2017 can also be sponsored by visiting
https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/norfolkwackyrally .
http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/norfolk-rally-team-to-make-1-500-mile-trip-
across-europe-in-aid-of-each-1-5075394

banger rally, charity rally, barmy to barcelona, wacky rally
01/27/2018 - 02:14

Bolton Round Table members enter Red Arrows car into Lille to Barcelona Wacky Rally for Be Strong charity

FOUR friends converted a 14-year-old ‘banger’ into a four-wheeled version of
a Red Arrows display plane – and entered it into the real life Wacky Races
Barney Wharton-Jones, Phil Stephenson, Toby Williamson and Craig Knights-
all members of Bolton Round Table- drove the specially modified 2003-
registered Rover saloon all the way from Bolton to Barcelona.

They covered 1900 miles over five days, with the 1500 miles between Lille, in
France, and the Catalan city all part of the 'Barmy to Barcelona' Wacky Rally.
On average the team shared 11 hours each day.
The car was painted red, with a white stripe along it,with a hole made in the
roof to create a 'cockpit'. Wings also folded out from the and the car boasted a
tail fin at the back.And canisters were fitted to the car so red, white and blue smoke billowed
from it in true Red Arrows style as it set off.

The Round table team also donned pilots’ uniforms – leading some spectators
on the continent to believe they actually were members of the Red Arrows.
“We all had fancy dress, it was a little too good,” said Mr Wharton Jones, who
lives near Rivington. “Three times we were asked where we were doing our
next display." And in Luxembourg one person took some convincing that the team were not
the Red Arrows themselves. "We had to say ‘we’re not really the Red Arrows’
– it was quite funny," said Mr Wharton-Jones.

The event took them through Thun, in Switzerland, over the Alps the Great St
Bernard Pass, the French Riviera, Costa Brava, Monte Carlo and the historic
French town of Arles.
Mr Wharton-Jones admits the quartet had a great time out on the road, in part
to celebrate Mr Stephenson’s 50th birthday – but there was a serious side to
it, too.​
The team's European adventure was also undertaken to raise funds for Be
Strong, a Bolton charity which supports the homeless and those with a history
of addiction and offending.He said: “It was Phil’s 50th birthday and we thought ‘let’s have a bit of lad’s
trip’, but not just a lad’s trip , with the Round Table, there’s always a way we
can help other people.”It was set up by Darren who himself has battled drug addiction and
homelessness among other in his past.
Mr Wharton-Jones, aged 55, first became aware of Be Strong when Mr
Armstrong visited his church, St Peter’s, in Belmont, to talk about the work his
charity does.“Darren came to talk to us about what and I was absolutely blown away by
what he was doing with what little funding he was.“So I went to the Round Table and said ‘four of us are going to do this, it’s
going to be a massive challenge, let’s see if we can raise some money for Be
Strong – and they all thought it was a fantastic idea.” “We try to help worthwhile caused and this really, really is one. You could be
cynical and say we have just been on a boys’ jolly – yes, we have – but we
have been promoting Be Strong and the awareness of Be Strong is more than
it was, I hope and we have raised what we have £2,400." The money raised will go to help a new project to help women supported by
the charity to launch their own business selling and fixing small appliances
such as microwaves, hoovers, irons and hairdryers.

Mr Armstrong said: “What they’ve done is absolutely amazing , they’ve spent
time away from their families to do it, and I just want to say thank you to them
for that.”

Mr Wharton-Jones and Bolton Round Table are now looking at ways they can
help Be Strong in future.

www.theboltonnews.co.uk/news

banger rally, charity rally, wacky rally, barmy to barcelona
01/27/2018 - 02:08

A fantastic article on us by Natalya from Boataffair

From assets to experiences: a wacky story of one inspiring entrepreneur

This summer I met a very inspiring entrepreneur Rob. Rob is British, who now lives in the South of France and runs his business from there. Rob’s story fascinated me, not only because he has changed his life completely 2 years ago, but also how he realised his dreams with his venture, enjoying a new lifestyle and creating experiences for himself and others.

Only 2 years ago Rob was based in the UK and worked for an events company. His schedule meant that he had very little time to see his daughter, in fact very little time to do anything at all in the non-working hours and no time to pursue his entrepreneurial ideas – if you ever lived in the fast-paced UK you understand the rat race.

One day, he simply decided it’s enough, bought a camper van, packed his family and headed off. This in itself takes a lot of courage and passion for adventure. He and his family travelled around Europe enjoying new experiences and freedom until eventually ending up in beautiful Croatia. Having stayed there for a while, Rob took up sailing and did his skipper licence. Some more travelling and adventures came after that until eventually the came across a small village in the South of France in the Languedoc region. They fell in love with the place immediately and decided to stay there.

Enriched by their travelling experiences, Rob decided to turn his ideas into reality, putting his events management expertise in place – he set up his company Wacky Rally. Wacky Rally is a beautiful example of investing in experiences – investing in fun, adventure and freedom. A few times a year a number of teams come together and go on a fun rally across Europe.

Teams are tasked with a purchase of an old banger of a car, customising it in an imaginative and amusing way – anything from the Bat Mobile, animals of various denominations, and pirate ships to hippy cars, tanks, and crazy paint jobs. Of course, the true adventure begins on the road, spread across 4 days and many European countries. Wacky rally is “The shared challenge, the camaraderie and the memorable stories are what make the wacky rally, Europe's favourite car rally, a trip you'll remember for the rest of your life”.

Wacky rallies in 2018 already offer two extremely fun routes: Barmy to Barcelona and Rockin to Rimini - having looked at all the photos and hearing the fun stories I am very tempted to sign up myself, if only I can convince my parents to look after my little one.

BUT! It gets even better! (I know how could it possibly – right?!)

Rob has now taken rally on the water, where he swapped cars for boats!

Next boating rally “Crazy in Croatia 2017” is taking place 23rd- 26th September in Croatia, cruising beautiful waters of Adriatic.

All you need to participate is a team and 4 days blocked off in your schedule. The boats are provided along with the skipper – so no boating experience necessary – only the flair for adventure and passion for fun on water.

Watch this short video of the 2016 rally – this looks like pure joy.

Moreover, if you are a sailing fan – you have an opportunity to stay for an extra 3 days and get a skipper license! Once again – I wish I did not have my business trips already planned, otherwise I will so be joining the teams, as there is still definitely time to plan the trip.

I love the experiences and the adventure Rob offers.I also love the fact, that they truly reflect Rob’s own values and desire for freedom for adventure, for investing in memories that are created by beautiful experiences. At Boataffair this is exactly what we believe in and what made us start the business.

Boataffair
Natalya Zubova Boataffair

To see the full article please head over to our friends at Boataffair. They provide a boutique boat matchmaking service which enables you to rent privately owned boats directly from the owners. Their Facebook and Instagram pages are worth a look too for some inspiration on where to go and what you might like to hire!

09/07/2017 - 23:24

THIS IS HOW A NORTH-EAST WOMAN COMPLETED A 1,500-MILE TREK IN £400 CAR WITH 190,000 MILES ON THE CLOCK FOR CHARITY

A North-east woman has completed a 1,500-mile rally across nine countries in an old £400 banger, despite breaking down.

Michelle Dunbar, 38, managed to get all the way to Barcelona from her home in Oyne, just under 10 miles from Inverurie, in the old Audi diesel 1.9 with 190,000 miles on the clock.

But the motor –named the Kilted Road Hoggers – was in such a bad state of repair that she had to take it to the nearest scrapyard after crossing the finish line in the Spanish city.

Michelle and her 24-year-old brother Graeme Geddes shared eight-hour driving days taking in some of the stunning scenery along one of the Alps’ highest passes and the French Riviera.

And the musician treated other rally drivers to a touch of Scotland when she pulled out her bagpipes at one of the meeting points and played a song in her kilt.

The mother-of-one spent several weeks painting the car, which had a Loch Ness Monster attached to the roof, in the evenings after putting her four-year-old son to bed.

She said: “It took me weeks to do. I had to wait until he was sleeping at night to work on it – my neighbours must have thought I was crazy.

“I was out in the evenings and setting my alarm early in the morning to finish it.”

Michelle travelled down to Newcastle with her brother then boarded a ferry across to Amsterdam to take part in the Barmy to Barcelona Wacky Rally.”

But the real journey started in the city of Lille in France where rally drivers had to register before driving through five countries on the first day.

She said: “It was an amazing experience in Switzerland because they closed off the road and people came along to watch with a parade going down the street.

“The car broke down on one of the Swiss mountain passes. I took a difficult route and then we ended up stuck in a traffic jam for about an hour and the car started to overheat.

“It was roasting hot weather and we had the heaters on full blast to take the heat away from the engine.

“As we were going up the mountain pass, the car just conked out completely.

“The car was at a gradient and we were sitting there looking up at the sky.”

Fortunately for Michelle, her partner Colin Murdoch, 40, and his 39-year-old friend Jamie Provatos, both of Aberdeen, were travelling in another car ahead and the men drove back to help the stranded pair.

She added: “When I opened the bonnet, there was steam coming out of the car.

“Jamie is a mechanic, he initially thought it didn’t look too good but we eventually found out it had just overheated and had to wait for the car to cool down.

“It started again, thankfully, but we had to change the route in case the car gave up on me. And off we went on our travels again.

“The car was scrapped in Barcelona. It was running on fumes because I didn’t want to put any more fuel in it. Just as I was pulling up to the scrapyard, the left hand side mirror fell off and the interior rear light was hanging down.

“I think the car was telling me it had had enough – it was done.”

Michelle said she was so exhausted after driving all the way to Barcelona earlier this month that she slept for almost two days when she reached the end of the trip.

The car enthusiast has raised nearly £1,000 for the Befriend a Child charity through her driving adventure.

Donations can be made by visiting justgiving.com/fundraising/michelle-marie-dunbar

Article Credit:
https://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/fp/news/local/bangers-barca-trip-raises...

banger rally, wacky rally, barmy to barcelona
08/07/2017 - 16:48

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