TWO local adventurers are taking on one of the world’s most challenging motor rallies to raise money for three charities.

Mike Parlby from Yelverton and Ed Blackwell from Callington, both 22 years old and fresh out of university, are currently taking part in the Mongol Rally, hailed as the greatest motoring adventure on the planet.

The Mongol Rally thunders 10,000 miles across the mountains, desert and steppe of Europe and Asia. There’s no backup, no support and no set route and they will be driving a tiny 0.8 litre Daewoo Matiz.

The duo are undertaking this mammoth challenge in aid of the Backup Trust, a charity that transforms lives affected by spinal cord injury and the Mongol Rally’s own chosen charity ‘Cool Earth’ dedicated to saving the rainforests.

They are also supporting the Max Levene Trust — a fund set up to help a young man from Truro who was paralysed at the age of 16 after breaking his neck in a freak accident while playing a rugby match between Truro College and Kelly College (now Mount Kelly) in Tavistock in 2010. Mike and Ed were part of the Kelly College team at that time.

The boys started their adventure at Goodwood Race Track in London on July 16 and having crossed the channel will now be driving through 19 different countries, most over rough terrain, before reaching Ulan Bataar in Mongolia.

The duo expressed thanks to Rotary District 175 covering Devon and Cornwall which is supporting their Mongol Rally initiative.

Anyone who would like to sponsor the team can do so by visiting www.gofundme.com/ubpuc7w4

To find out more about the team, the rally and to keep up to date with their blog posts along their journey, visit www.bataarlatethannever.com