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Brits Richard Meredith and Phil Colley drove into the record books when they and their travel-stained Aston Martin V8 Vantage arrived at the InterContinental London Park Lane on August 14 at the end of an epic 10,000-mile journey from Tokyo to London along the new Asian Highway network of roads. They arrived exactly on schedule after crossing 18 countries with a series of border challenges, gruelling days on roads that seemed as if they were surfing a frozen mid-Atlantic and with temperatures in the car of over 40 degrees, seeing numerous catastrophic accidents along the route, having spread the Road safety message along the way and having survived 49 days together in the same vehicle and emerging better friends than at the beginning!
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In the same time it's taken to complete the journey, an estimated 150,000 people will have been killed on the world's roads - a figure which includes 25,000 children. UNICEF quotes statistics in the West that show that this death toll is largely preventable by effective educational campaigns and it is for these that the funds will be used..
The two set out from Japan on June 25 - crossing the East China Sea into South Korea and then encountering a lengthy border crossing into China. After 18 days traversing China, the duo entered Kazakhstan, Krygyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, reaching the end of the Asian Highway in Istanbul, before completing their drive through Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Germany, France and finally crossing the channel back to the UK. |
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In an impressive feat of reliability and endurance for the drivers and their factory-prepared Aston Martin - which had already accrued 100,000 miles before departing. The car was being used by Aston Martin as part of their durability testing.
Richard and Phil are grateful for your support and that of key sponsors - especially Bridgestone, who supplied the tyres and backup support across China, and Intercontinental Hotels Group, their host in accommodation, who soothed away the kinks of the long days of travel with their generous hospitality and hosted Press Conferences along the way.
At the final press conference in Park Lane, London, Richard expressed his pride and relief and a sense of disorientation now the trip has ended. ''This is a memorable moment,'' he said ''I had been planning this trip for nearly two years and we did it: on schedule and with the car and us intact''.
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Dr Ulrich Bez, Aston Martin's Chief Executive Officer who was in London to welcome the duo, was equally enthusiastic.
''We have followed Richard's and Phil's ups and downs all the way, and admired their, determination. The car, too, has been more than up to the demanding task they asked of it, and we are very proud of its unfailing reliability. This journey has been the V8 Vantage's toughest test to date, and reiterates that the Vantage is a truly useable and durable sports car.'' As a gesture of Aston Martin's commitment to this epic fundraising journey, Dr Bez announced that the car would be auctioned and all the proceeds would be donated to the UNICEF China fund that the drive has been supporting.
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Richard and Phil have been using the drive to highlight the following statistics provided by the UN and UNICEF:
- At least 440,000 people are estimated to be killed and 30 million injured each year on Asian roads - including the Asia-Pacific Highway;
- By 2020 the UN estimates that two thirds of the world's road deaths may occur on Asian roads, due to rapid motorisation;
At least 1.2 million people worldwide are estimated to be killed each year on the roads - more than 3000 people every day;
Road crashes are the leading cause of death for young people aged 10-24
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