Adventures lure area man to compete in odd event
By PATRICK DONLIN - pdonlin@sungazette.comArticle Photos
Fact Box
Mongol Rally has only three rulesThe world is just a little bit too safe, according to the Mongol Rally’s Web site.
Gone are the days where the edge of the map called you forth to discover what lay beyond — satellite maps and GPS now have the capability of revealing the world’s wonders from your armchair.
So imagine yourself in the middle of the gargantuan Kazakh desert, your car slowly being shredded by the dirt track your map says is a motorway, completely lost hundreds of miles from civilization with no back-up crew to rescue you.
That’s the adventure part of the Mongol Rally, which sends 500 teams racing small vehicles from London to Mongolia and raising money for charity along the way.
In a typical year, about half of the teams reach the finish line in one piece.
There are only three core rules:
• The on-your-own rule: Drivers are completely responsible for themselves. If something goes wrong, they have to get themselves out of it.
• The charity money rule: Each team entering the rally must raise a minimum of about $2,000 for the rally charities.
• The 1-liter rule: Cars must have an engine of 1-liter or less.
The event is organized by the Adventurists, a socially conscious company working to make the world more interesting by creating real adventures.
For more information, go to www.mongolrally.com
Paul E. Shively will co-pilot a compact car that, by the rules, must be purchased for less than $1,000, during the fifth annual Mongol Rally that starts July 19 in London’s Hyde Park.
Joining Shively will be his long-time friend Scott Partenheimer of Haddonfield, N.J., whom he met a decade ago when the two lived in Germany as exchange students.
They will be among 500 teams from around the globe whose sights are set on the finish line in Mongolia.
Drivers choose their own routes, and Shively said he and Partenheimer will take turns driving 6,000 miles.
Another trait the duo has in common is stature that inspired their team name: “Two Small Guys — One Small Car.”
“I’m 5-foot, 7-inches after my girlfriend rubs my back and I stand in sandals,” Shively said. “Scott is an inch shorter, and the car will be small.”
There are few official rules, according to Shively. He said cars must meet certain specifications, including engines of no more than 1-liter in size.
Most American cars have engines around 3.5 liters, according to Shively. That narrows choices, and he and Partenheimer are likely to buy a European car such as a Fiat or Peugeot sometime after they arrive by air in London on June 25.
Fortunate to gain entry, Partenheimer’s name was drawn from a pool of applicants. Shively, whose name was not drawn, lightheartedly explained why his friend chose him to share the adventure.
“I’m about the only person he knows who’s crazy enough to go through with it,” Shively joked.
Partenheimer is glad to have a partner.
Learning of the event two years ago, Partenheimer said he couldn’t find anyone interested last year.
Goals of the rally have been the same every year.
“The point of the rally is actually not to be the first ones to make it across the finish line,” Shively said. “The point is to have adventures along the way.”
There will be plenty of opportunity for action, considering the course.
Crossing the English Channel to France, Shively and Partenheimer plan to ride coach on the same train shipping their car in cargo.
Driving through France to Germany, the pair plans to visit with friends in northern Germany and Berlin before a rendezvous with other drivers in Prague, Czech Republic.
From Krakow, Poland, to multiple stops in the Ukraine, Shively and Partenheimer will continue to take turns behind the wheel, driving to Volgograd, Russia.
Much of the course will be traveled on established roads, but not in Kazakhstan, which teams will see after their first of two trips through Russia.
Explaining that he and Partenheimer will blaze their own trails in Kazakhstan, Shively said this country is known for its deserts and ditches.
“The roads are dust or non-existent,” he said.
Entering Russia once again, a southern portion of Siberia will be explored prior to hitting the home stretch for the Mongolian capitol of Ulan Bator. Parking their car once and for all, Shively and Partenheimer hope to reach the finish line there. The “two small guys” hope to auction to charity their car — if it survives to cross the finish line.
Each team is required to raise at least $2,000 for charity prior to leaving London.
Half of that amount is directed to Mercy Corps Mongolia, which Shively said supports rural Mongolians. They are taught efficient farming techniques and agriculture science, to help them become more self-sufficient, according to Shively.
Drivers then choose from a list of charities to donate the remainder of their account. Shively and Partenheimer selected the Christina Noble Children’s Foundation, which Shively said establishes orphanages in the inner cities of Vietnam and Mongolia while providing general education for the children served.
“It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time — raise money for the charities,” Partenheimer said. He and Shively plan to visit Mongolian orphanages, to see where the money is going.
Expecting to absorb more foreign culture they can later pass on to students they someday teach, Shively and Partenheimer plan to stay in homes while traveling instead of hotels.
“We’re both big cultural enthusiasts,” Shively said of himself and his teammate.
Shively’s parents, Samuel D. and Brenda L. Shively of 138 Strouse Road in Clinton Township, agree.
While a teenager a few years ago, Shively learned to speak German, which Samuel said he did on weekends.
As a youngster, Shively participated in charitable giving, Samuel said, mentioning the Boy Scouts Scouting for Food program as an example.
When Shively first told his mother of his Mongol Rally plans, Brenda admitted initial shock, but then realized her son has always loved adventure.
“If you’re going to do something like this, do it while you’re young and unattached,” Brenda said she told her son.
“He’ll learn a lot from this, I’m sure,” Brenda said. “We support him, if that’s what he wants to do.”
Avidly exploring the Internet, Shively and Partenheimer are making arrangements to stay with host families through www.couchsurfing.com
Part of this program is to bring a small gift from home while exchanging world perspective, according to Shively.
The two small guys plan to bring two small gifts — a total of 50 T-shirts, half of them saying “I love New York” and the other half depicting their Mongol Rally team logo.
Couch surfers don’t expect to get any keepsakes in return. Food, showers and a place to stay are enough, according to Partenheimer. To add even more fun to the trip, Partenheimer said his team plans to haul the “largest, most useless object” to win a prize in that category.
One team previously winning that prize carted along a lawnmower through desert wasteland, Partenheimer said.
Shively and Partenheimer may be contacted online at www.mongolrally.theadventurists.com/onesmallcar
