By LUKE VOOGT
Mechanical problems, visa knockbacks and roadblocks haven’t stopped Barwon Heads’ Myles Benham from taking on one the world’s great continental car trips: the Mongol Rally.
Myles and his German friends David and Maja made it to Turkey this week, after travelling through Austria, Slovenia and the Balkans.
“My friends and I just wanted to do something different,” Myles said.
“We had the time for a larger trip and none of us knew anything about Central Asia.”
“The opportunity of going to places like Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan, which are not normal travel destinations, was something that we found very exciting.”
Yet “Team Pineapple” ran into mechanical problems before even embarking on the journey.
The group found an old Mazda Demio on eBay in Germany, which they affectionately dubbed the “pineapple express”.
“The first mechanic who looked at it, told us we got a bargain and that it would only cost a small amount to fix it up,” Myles said.
But weeks before departure the Pineapple Express had some major problems, forcing the group to ditch the car at the last minute.
“Luckily Maja had an old Citroen collecting dust,” Myles said.
“So after some convincing and pleading to her parents we were allowed to drive it to Mongolia.”
The group was also meant to have a fourth member: Maja’s Syrian friend Ekim.
Unfortunately Ekim was unable to get all the required visas and had to pull out. But the remaining trio has loved the trip regardless.
“Besides a roadblock in the mountains of Montenegro due to a small landslide, everything has been smooth sailing,” Myles said.
“Currently we are travelling through Turkey which we were all a little wary about when the trip started, but since we have arrived we have only had amazing experiences. The real problems will likely occur once we get a little more remote and a little further away from civilization, but fingers crossed everything holds up.”
Myles’ most memorable moment so far was jumping 24m from Stari Most Bridge in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The 16th Century Ottoman bridge was reconstructed after being destroyed during the Croat-Bosniak War.
“Making the plunge into the icy water below was absolutely insane,” Myles said.
Myles said the group had met some incredible people travelling through nine countries so far.
“A Turkish family hosted us for two nights in Bursa and showed us around, which was a great experience for all of us.”
An elderly Montenegrin couple allowed the group to camp in their spare paddock, overlooking the mountains, while a Herzegovinian invited them to a secret garden party on an island near his village.
The group is raising money for two environmental charities: CoolEarth and Tusk.org
CoolEarth works to stop deforestation while Tusk.org protects Africa’s wildlife.
The Mongol Rally has grown from six cars participating in 2004, to an average of 250 to 300 cars each year.
