THE THREE MOST WEIRD AND WONDERFUL RALLIES

Chances are, most of us aren’t going to experience the thrill and sense of draining achievement that comes from the mighty endurance rallies: The Dakar, Gumball3000 or 24 Heures du Mans. Or so I thought…

How wrong I am. For it transpires that those of us without an army of mechanics, queue of sponsors and souped-up million-pound cars have other options; options that are seriously weird and wonderful. But whether driving a rickshaw or a beat-up banger, underestimate the challenge at your peril; competing is all about finishing rather than winning. Here are three brilliantly bizarre rallies that, at some point in your life, need to feature on your résumé.

THE RICKSHAW RUN, , A two-week 3,500km adventure across India… in a vehicle not too dissimilar to a three-wheeled shopping trolley. With no set route and no back up, only start and finish points are set in stone – the rest is up to you and your mates. You will get lost, you will get stuck and you will break down.

Rugged dirt roads and the manic Indian city streets – and everything in between – in the least suitable vehicle possible, this will be a trip you will never forget.

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PLYMOUTH-BANJUL CHALLENGE, , Established in 2002, the Banjul Challenge sees low budget cars stumble out of Plymouth and head south through Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania and Senegal, before finishing in Banjul in The Gambia. It is a condition that all cars must be donated to the Control Committee on arrival, where they are auctioned and the funds distributed to local worthy causes.

Covering a distance of 3,700 miles, including a two-day crossing of the Sahara Desert, this is not only a mighty endurance race, but an incredible way to take in the beautiful African scenery and sites en route.

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MONGOL RALLY, , The most challenging and wonderful of them all, this is 10,000 miles of feral, unsupported chaos, departing from Goodwood in the UK and ending in Mongolia. Participants have three options of transport: anything with an engine capacity smaller than 1-litre, a motorbike of under 125cc or a vehicle of pure comedy to be exempt from the rules.

Taking approximately a month to complete – depending on how lost you get and how your car or bike fares – this is the ultimate in motoring stupidity. Think Mr Bean’s Reliant Robin meets the Camel Trophy and we’re getting somewhere close. As their website states: “It’s not clever, it’s not safe and you might not finish, but it is the greatest adventure on the planet.”

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