**Update 25/06/10**

Thank you so much to everyone who has helped us reach our target with a full 2 weeks to spare! Justyna & I have been over-whelmed by the generosity shown and when times get tough on the road we will be spurred on knowing so many people are behind us.

We are still keen to raise as much as we can for Go Help so please keep donating; however if you would prefer to help us with the other expenses of the trip - mainly the cost of petrol to get the van to Ulaanbaatar so that it can be auctioned for the charity - please use the 'Donate' link in the top right of our rally homepage (http://mongolia.charityrallies.org/steppebysteppe). Thanks again to everyone who has supported us - without you this whole trip wouldn't be happening.

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Thanks for taking the time to visit our JustGiving page, and help us towards our £1000 fund-raising target for Go Help.

On 10 July this year, Justyna and I will pull out of Highbury Fields in London in a subtly decorated vehicle, with the vague notion of "going a bit south, then hanging a left at Calais".

Our destination will be Ulaan Baatar in Mongolia, via Western & Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Russia and the Gobi Desert - roughly 10,000 miles away from our comfy bed and life in South West London. The aim is to get there in one piece within 4 weeks, before handing the vehicle and all the equipment we have taken over to charity to either use or auction to raise more money for the work they are doing.

By way of enticement, we can guarantee everyone who donates gets to travel with us - at least in name. Yep, bung Go Help a few quid, have your name immortalised on the side of a 2002 Renault Kangoo van as it trundles via autobahn, track, steppe and desert.

The event we are supporting is the only 'rally' entirely for charity - Go Help work with Save the Children and other NGOs on the ground in Mongolia to make a tangible, significant difference to the lives of disadvantaged people across a country where a third of the population live below the poverty line. 

In addition, urgent help is needed to counteract the effects of the 'Dzud' on the nomadic herders that are synonymous with Mongolia. There was no rain in the summer of 2009 and no crops grew; an extremely cold winter has followed, with heavy snow. The conditions mean that animals are dying in their millions. People's entire livelihoods and way of life are in danger of being wiped out.   

You can read more about the charity projects your money will go towards here:

http://mongolia.charityrallies.org/rallygroup/8204/page/2010-charity-projects

Sky News and Al Jazeera English reports on the effects of the Dzud:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04e_QAztUKU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNRh88YgCFc

The Mongolia Charity Rally is also the only event of its type which works with the Mongolian government to ensure that everything we take - down to the very vehicle we drive - is of ultimate benefit to the Mongolian people.

Follow us online at http://mongolia.charityrallies.org/steppebysteppe for regular updates on how close we're getting to the start line, and then from 10 July for news from the road.

Thanks again for taking the time to drop by and donate - every penny really does count.

Tony and Justyna

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.