The Mongol Rally kicked off with a launch party at a castle in the British countryside. Bodium castle - surrounded by a moat and everything! You just don’t get stuff like that in America, so I was pretty psyched. I’d just spent a few days with Mo in Devon county, Derick had flown into London the night before, and Johannes was coming up from Germany with the car. Our plan was to meet up late afternoon at the castle, but with a few mishaps, like me catching the wrong train, the reunion didn’t happen until late night.
Johannes picked me up at the train station, and by the time we got to the castle the festivities were well underway. We parked our car towards the back of a dirt lot that held a couple hundred rally cars and waltzed over towards the party. Food and drinks were being served under a large tent, and there were a scattering of hay bales for people to hang out on. A DJ was set up on a stage with disco lights and a fog machine, and people were dancing around on the lawn below. Behind all of that sat Bodium Castle. The crowd was lively, people were drinking, mingling, and talking excitedly about the upcoming adventure. Many of the teams were decked out in zany costumes, full-body animal suits, decorative cover-alls, face paint and silly hair. One team of boisterous young brits wore nothing but speedos.
By the time Derick showed up it was already nearing midnight. The party was still buzzing, but we were all a little exhausted from a day of traveling. Johannes arrived earlier that afternoon and set up our tent on a big lawn up the hill from the parking lot, so after a beer we hit the hay.
The next morning the castle campground was alive with people prepping for the launch of the rally. After breakfast we broke down our tent and packed up the car. An energetic young guy took the stage midmorning to emcee the launch event and people gathered around as different teams were recognized and awarded for various prizes - ‘most money raised for charity’, and ‘least and most prepared’. After a huge group photo, the teams ran back to their cars and the rally was underway!
The next checkpoint would happen a few days later in the Czech Republic, but our goal that night was to make it to Germany, to stay with Johannes’s parents in the village where he grew up. It wasn’t too long a drive to Dover where we boarded a ferry to France, and checked off England as the first country of many on our way to Mongolia!
