Rust Bucket Rally prepares for first ever September voyage from Wellingborough to Monaco
The Rust Bucket Rally will take on its first ever September expedition as the convoy looks to the French Alps and eventually to Monaco to support a host of charities.
While each year the Rust Bucket Rally takes place in June, most recently a trip to the Swiss Alps including a stop at the famed Stelvio Pass, this year organisers have arranged a trip next month, following high demand for previous years.
The voyage to Monaco, which winds through Germany, Switzerland and France, will be a smaller affair with 15 cars taking on the task starting on September 12, which organiser Carlos Baldry says will make the journey a more sociable affair.
He said: “Following on the success from the June rally the total is at £91,000 raised for Cyntha Spencer, which is an incredible amount, and there were a lot of people who wanted to do a rally, so we introduced a new one, and that’s exactly what this is.
"It’s really nice, it’s a smaller group and I’ll get to spend more time with everybody. When there’s a big group you don’t get to see everybody so it will be nice to devote more time to the teams that are coming.
“We’re really looking forward to it.”
Day one will be a drive to Grenoble in France, with the second day taking the convoy through the French Alps to Monaco. Day three will be a journey to Stuttgart and the final day will see the group return home.
As usual, the Rust Bucket Rally will return to Wellingborough to a welcome at the Old Grammarians Sports Ground.
While the June Rust Bucket Rallies often have one common charity which all participants raise funds for, this year is different, as every participating car has the freedom to fundraise for an organisation of their choice.
Carlos added: “That means they can fundraise for smaller charities who will really appreciate whatever we can raise for them.”
Luke Rixon and Michael Nelson, from Wellingborough, will be taking on the Rust Bucket Rally in a a 22-year-old Audi TT, bought for £1,000 on Facebook Marketplace in aid of East Anglia's Children's Hospices (EACH), a charity which provides care to babies and children with life-threatening conditions, supporting more than 500 families at any one time, including bereaved families.
Michael said: “It turns heads everywhere we go. Kids love it and people take photos - it’s basically a cartoon character on wheels.
"It feels like a go-kart, chaotic, but in a fun way.”
They’ll be attempting to complete the trek in memory of Luke’s sister-in-law’s son, Ethan, who passed away in 2013.
Luke and Michael’s fundraiser can be found online here.
The Rust Bucket Rally is on the lookout for participating charities to be the focal point of next year’s rally, which is expected to take place next June through Scandinavia around Norway, Sweden and Denmark.
Charities who are interested in partnering with the Rust Bucket Rally are asked to contact [email protected].