THREE friends are racing home after driving 3,000km in a 007 mission to raise money for wounded heroes in a rusty old banger.
Today (Thursday) Steve Maloney, Craig Stockton and Simon Barwell are due to arrive back in Frodsham after five days of driving across Europe in their renovated ‘James Bondeo’.
The trio, who are from Frodsham, Delamere and Bridge Trafford, are on target to raise more than £3,000 for Help for Heroes after driving over snowy peaks and racing through Italian countryside while visiting landmarks made famous by the much-loved spy films.
But, the journey hasn’t been all plain sailing for the friends, who navigated miles of twisting roads as they tackled the Furka Pass, where Sean Connery famously raced in Goldfinger in their renovated Ford Mondeo which cost less than £250.
Speaking to The Chronicle on Monday as they drove across the Alps, Simon, 42, said the team, nicknamed Team Bondeo, hoped to arrive back in Frodsham this evening to enjoy a well-earned pint at the Queen’s Head and be reunited with their families, friends and supporters.
“The support has just been fantastic from everyone,” said Simon, who thanked local businesses for their generous donations seeing the team smash their original target of £1,500 just days into their fundraising mission.
“The car’s got 192,000 miles on the clock so you never know what’s going to happen with a car like that.
“We are having a fantastic time. At the moment the guys are driving over the Alps and we are preparing to leave Switzerland. It is just breathtaking.”
The team, who are taking part in this year’s annual charity Banger Run organised by the Royal Air Force, started their epic challenge on Saturday with a bang when they were named best team at the starting line at RAF Halton in Aylesbury.
In the weeks up to the drive, Simon said the team spent days fundraising for the event, taking the renovated car to businesses and pubs across Frodsham and Helsby and even taking the car to Chester Fire Station to drum up support.
“We got everyone to sign the car. So far we have over 100 signatures and have raised over £2,800, but we expect to raise even more,” said Simon.
By the time they have completed the trip the team will have driven 3,000km visiting sights featured in Bond films from across the decades, including Chateau De Chantilly featured in A View To A Kill and Contra Dam which Bond famously jumped off in the opening scene of GoldenEye before crossing the finish line in Monaco, which has been in several titles including Casino Royale.
