Mersey Basin Campaign Blog

No news is good news?

No news yet from our heroic Mongol Rally drivers, Green Team 2CV. However, other drivers have been texting in to the Rally homepage, so you can get a flavour of life on the road to Ulan Bator. Graeme and Mark will be sending us a report next time they're able to get online, and the blog will bring you an update as soon as we can!

newsflash!

Just a quick post to say that Green Team 2CV's Mongol Rally adventure has been covered by the Telegraph! Read the story here...

Logo'd up!

 

With just a few days left before their departure at the weekend, Graeme and Mark of Green Team 2CV say they are too busy with final preparations to be nervous about the rally at the moment. One of the tasks is to mount the winning logos, designed by children from Elmridge Primary School in Hale Barns, onto the sides of the 'green machine'. The logos (above) were chosen from around 30 beautiful designs. After the rally, the car is due to be auctioned for charity in Mongolia, so the children's artwork will be decorating a family's car for some time to come.

According to Graeme, the solar panel is now working, and everything seems to be set to communicate via laptop during the journey. Keep checking back to follow Green Team 2CV's progress ACROSS THE WORLD......

The Chemical Brothers feat. Sammy the Salmon

Thanks to Izzy, our eagle-eyed music correspondent on the River Weaver, we can bring you the exciting news that our own Sammy the Salmon (of River Mersey Relay fame) hasn't just been lazing about in the shallows since he completed his recent pilgramage along the river. He's evidently been out and about making contacts in the world of music. Glastonbury headliners the Chemical Brothers have namechecked Sammy in a track on their recent album We Are The Night. The track, The Salmon Dance, seems to have set off a frenzy of salmon-related dancing amongst the band's fans, who are beginning to turn up to gigs in various fishy outfits and accessories. Sammy wasn't available for comment, but his agent confirms that the famous fish hopes to further his music career where possible, and has lined up some dj-sets through the summer. He won't be abandoning his main role campaigning for the health of the Northwest's waterways any time soon, though.

You can listen to The Salmon Dance on the band's myspace page

Elmridge welcomes Green Team 2CV

It may not quite be Mongolia, but Green Team 2CV got on the road on Friday to visit the children of Elmridge Primary School in Hale Barns. They are working towards eco-school status, and have decided to follow Green Team 2CV's progress as part of their project. Everyone was very excited about having the chance to inspect the car at close quarters, and the class were very well-informed about the car, the rally, and Mongolia - in fact, they knew more than the drivers themselves. They've designed some beautiful logos for the car's doors - currently being judged - and will be handing over a box of goodies for Graeme and Mark to deliver to their twin Mongolian school in Dundgobi.

Keep checking back to see how Graeme and Mark are progressing - there are just two weeks to go until their departure date.

a rallying cry from Fourways House

MBC staff were all revved up on Thursday by a visit from the one and only Green Team 2CV , Envirolink NW's intrepid Mongol Rally contestants. Graeme and Mark popped by to show off their eco-friendly 2CV, now complete with sponsors' logos and a nifty green and black paint job. The other residents of Hilton Street couldn't believe their ears when they were informed that this beautiful piece of engineering would be thrown to the mercy of the Gobi Desert within a few short weeks.

After a quick photocall, we presented Green Team 2CV with Samantha, stunt-double of our adventurous friend Sammy the Salmon. She'll be joining the lads on their epic journey, bidding to be not only the first marine creature to cross the Gobi Desert, but possibly the only salmon on Mongol soil.

Graeme and Mark seemed calm, despite the ever-growing media storm around them, and the fact that they'll be setting off just three short weeks from now. They've certainly been taking the preparation seriously, having recently met the world 2CV rallying champion, and appeared on BBC Northwest Tonight.

They let us in to a few trade secrets during their visit, so here are some little known facts about the team:

• The idea to join the Mongol Rally came to them as they drove back from Hogmanay celebrations in Edinburgh
• Their first 2CV came from www.freecycle.org
• In total, parts from FOUR 2CVs have been incorporated into the final rally car
• They're not worried by the fact that, despite several attempts, no-one has yet completed the Mongol Rally in a 2CV
• The rally car was bought, unseen, from Ebay, and they'd barely driven it out of London when the bonnet fell off!
• When travelling through city traffic, the car will be almost completely powered by its solar panel
• They've chosen their rally route - which will take them through 22 countries - because it offers the warmest, longest and most challenging itinerary on the Mongol Rally.

This week: Graeme and Mark will chose the winning logo for the side of their car. Watch this space for more news.

Hilton Street rally 2 - Manchester's answer to Ewan and Charlie...

Hilton Street rally 1 - Green Team 2CV hits the Northern Quarter

Off to Mongolia? Better do your homework...

Time for a quick update from Green Team 2cv - the intrepid Envirolink NW employees who are taking on the Mongol Rally, driving from Hyde Park to Ulan Bator in a 2cv. Graeme and Mark are now just a month away from departure, but they're making sure they've done their homework before they hit the road.

Apart from putting their luxury vehicle through thermal imaging, and tricking it out with a solar panel and battery pack, they've also linked up with local pupils to help them prepare for the 10 000 mile trek. Children from Elmridge Primary School in Hale Barns are currently working towards Eco-School status, and will be following the progress of Green Team 2cv as they travel across Europe, through Russia, and onwards to Mongolia. The children have designed a logo for the side of the car, and, thanks to the Rally's charity, Mercy Corps, Elmridge has now been twinned with a Mongolian school in Dundgobi. Graeme and Mark's solar panel, among other items that have been donated for their car, will be given to the Mongolian school when (if?) they arrive at their destination. Find out more...

STOP PRESS: The latest news is that the 2cv, now fully kitted out, will be visiting us at Mersey Basin Campaign HQ later in the week - look out for some photos. You never know, Sammy the Salmon might even manage to hitch a ride from the Mersey to Mongolia............

Click here to sponsor Graeme or Mark.

Good experience for your 2CV....

Where are you going on your summer holidays? Perhaps you're worried about reducing your carbon footprint, and have decided to holiday at home, or find slower, more sustainable modes of transport? Well, whatever you're doing, you're unlikely to have gone to the same kinds of lengths as our friends Graeme and Mark from Envirolink Northwest. They're taking part in the London to Mongolia Rally in their 2 CV, but have decided to do it as sustainably as possible...just to give themselves an extra challenge. MBC's blog will be checking in with their progress once the rally gets underway (21st July), but in the meantime, check out their website to see what they're up to........