Pair face another setback in their Mongolia drive (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Pair face another setback in their Mongolia drive

Mark, left, and John BarkerA FATHER and son driving team fear they will have to pull out of a charity car rally from Swindon to Mongolia.

Mark Barker and his dad John, both from Stratton St Margaret, set off on the Mongol Rally last Saturday.

But their quest to drive the 10,000 miles to Mongolia shuddered to a halt after their Robin Reliant broke down in Calais.

They had hoped to set off again today in a Ford Sierra.

But now they are waiting to hear if the Mongolian authorities will agree to waive the $5,000 import duties needed to leave their car in the country. Otherwise the cost may mean they have to pull out of the charity race. Mark, 30, said the authorities had originally agreed to waive the duties for all 42 cars taking part in the rally, so that they could be left in Mongolia and donated to local charities.

But since then, a new government had been elected and officials have not yet confirmed they will allow a new car to be added to the list.

Mark said although he and John, 58, are disappointed, they still hope to get back on the road.

He said: "We've got to leave by Monday to have any chance of catching up with everyone."

They had also hoped to raise £7,000 for charity Send a Cow, which provides livestock to African villages. But even if they do have to give up their Mongolian dream, Mark said they will be taking the newly-repaired Robin Reliant on another charity drive next month, this time for the Welsh Air Ambulance.

They plan to compete in the Trotter Round, in which three-wheeled cars follow the British route taken in the World Rally Championships.

He said: "If you wanted to guarantee you'd get to Mongolia you'd take a Range Rover, so it's not one of those things where you'd be surprised if you broke down.

"But we had hoped to get further than Calais."

Mark and his wife Ruby got to Moscow in last year's event.