Rally the Long Way Down: London - Algiers - Cape Town

Start: London - Big Ben, January 1st 2011
Finish: Cape Town - Clock Tower, January 27th 2011

The Ultimate Rally Challenge

No previous rally from Europe to Cape Town has kept the wheels turning throughout the length of Africa without recourse to airlifts or shipping over some part of way. The London - Algiers - Cape Town Rally has a never-rallied-before route and is designed for those who think they have what it takes to drive this 8,000 mile adventure.... against the clock >> Read more ...

Newsletter Two - (added April 7th)

This newsletter contains some important visa and insurance information >> Newsletter Two

The Last of the Record Breakers

We recently had the opportunity to meet John Hemsley who, in 1983, drove a Range Rover from Cape Town to London in just over 14 days. We have added John Hemsley to our Africa Pioneers page >> Read more ...

Survey Video

Philip Young took a video camera along with him when he joined the route survey team back in January.

Our short video provides a glimpse of some of the London - Algiers - Cape Town rally route from sub-Saharan Niger, through Nigeria to the jungles of Cameroon, Gabon and the Congo.

In Cameroon - Find the picture gallery links on the Route Survey page

Route Survey - January 2010

As we countdown to January 2011 the London - Algiers - Cape Town rally is building momentum with daily inquiries and entries arriving at the rally office. On 1st February the route survey team reached Cape Town at the end of their month long drive to prepare the London-Cape Town route. The Route Survey page has Philip Young's recce reports, Sam Rutherford's diary notes and photo gallery links >> Read more ...

Event Outline

We take in the vast emptiness of the Sahara, followed by the jungle trails of Cameroon, Gabon and The Congo, then drive the length of Angola, to emerge in the arid desert coast of northern Namibia. Not without reason do they call this the Skeleton Coast, and then we storm the Cederberg Mountains as a sting in the tail before a prize-giving celebration for the survivors in Cape Town. The roads are on the Michelin maps but this can be deceptive.... it won't be easy. Overland motorcylists ride this route and it's even been tackled by bicycle, all the way. Now we plan to turn it into a rally-route, with the discipline of the clock ticking every day.

An MG ZR tackles Africa on a previous ERA event

The Africa Motoring Pioneers

There is a proud history of how the pioneers opened up Africa to the motor-car.

In 1932 a one-litre Morris with minimal preparation became the first “family car” to drive the full length of Africa. It took months >> Read more ...

About the Organisers

During the past 20 years Philip Young and the Endurance Rally Association team have organised more than 60 major international rallies, including the longest rally in history, the Around the World in 80 Days, and 12 rallies in Africa, including London-Dakar, the Classic Safari Challenge, and World Cup Rallies. The team that initiated the first-ever international Historic Rally for classic cars in 1988, the Pirelli Classic Marathon, the first Monte Carlo rally for classic cars, the Monte Carlo Challenge, the Peking to Paris and other major events, now plans the most adventurous – a rally against the clock down the full length of Africa.

Some other Endurance Rally Association events ERA events rally plates