38 Cars, 1 Wheelie Bin, and a Wild Wensleydale Goose Chase
Despite the rain, 38 cars took part in a charity car rally fundraiser — with teams tackling blindfold driving, clue-hunting, and sheep selfies across Wensleydale. The event, held in memory of Ian, was a true collective effort, with many members of the local community coming together to help organise, support, and take part. Together, they raised vital funds for the Multiple System Atrophy Trust.
We met twice to plan the route and games for the day. We laughed the whole way round thinking of little things to get people to do – especially when we had them looping the same village three times on different routes. Once we had a vague plan in place, we had local car rally veterans, Kath and Lawrence, test it for us. We spoke with Shane and Jackie at Semerwater to get the landowner’s permission for the midway stop and games, and we got in touch with Michael and Davinia at Bainbridge Vets to use as a starting point for the day’s shenanigans.
We had an expectation of around 15 cars to attend, so when more and more got in touch on the morning, we had to make a contingency route starting halfway round – and thank goodness we did, as 38 cars took part! Luckily, we had enlisted the help of Rachael, Garry, and Jackie for the day, without whom we would have been stuck.
The blindfolded driving challenge of who could get closest to the bin was a fabulous start to the day – and the start to some divorce proceedings! We had a few folks call in for a clue who were off route – some 16 miles away from where they should have been! We added in some photo challenges so people had something to remember the day by too. We now have some great team pictures with a sheep.
It was important that we had the essence of Ian in the day, so we made a crossword with all things to do with Ian as answers, and we also had people collecting items beginning with the letters I, A, and N. We were not expecting an Iron, an Axe, and a Numberplate – but we got them!
Ending the day back at the Crown Inn for a raffle, which was so well supported by local businesses (The Bakewell, the Middle House, Sykes House, Ruby Arts Tattoo Studio, Askrigg Ropemakers – to name a few) and villagers, was perfect. People grabbed a well-earned drink whilst Garry and Jackie ran the raffle with the help of Rachael, and we did the marking for various prizes. We are still overwhelmed by the support for the event and glad it could go towards something so important.
Thank you so much to Brian, Jennifer, and Christina for organising a car rally fundraiser in memory of Ian. We are so grateful for your support, and we truly appreciate you sharing your story with us.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in the blogs published on these pages are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the MSA Trust.
Recent Posts
MSA Candlelight 2025
19 Jun 2025 | 2 comments
International Nurses Day 2025
12 May 2025 | 1 comment
