JOLON IMP 2013
The Hillman Imp will be turning 50 years in May 2013. To celebrate the fact that there still remains a sizeable number of the original 500,000 that were built, the IMP CLUB is arranging a massive celebration in Coventry where the engine for this wonderful British car emanated from.
To coincide with this gathering of worldwide Imp owners I am planning to present one of my Imps for display at the event. However getting it to the event is going to be the interesting part as I intend driving it from Johannesburg to Coventry, hence the name JOLON IMP, Johannesburg to London and from there on to Coventry.
I will complete the trip with Johan Meyers, a good friend of mine from Johannesburg. As luck would have it, Johan is a full-time mechanic who specializes in old British motor cars. He and I have been planning how best to prepare the car for the arduous trip. We are acutely aware of the misfortune that befell the two chaps who attempted the England to Mongolia rally in another Imp some time ago. Sadly Olly Rowland & Frank Claydon of ‘Team Badger – Mission Imp-possible’ had to abandon their beloved Imp in some God forsaken country in central Asia. We are hoping to touch base with them to compare prep notes so as to minimize potential problems during our trip.
Since I have carried an eyesight challenge since an early age, we have decided that we will use the trip to raise awareness for sight challenged people and at our final destination we would like to be able to make a monetary donation to the R.N.I.B.
Our first choice of route will be through Botswana, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethopia, Sudan, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Germany, France and through the Chunnel to England. However this might quickly change depending on the political situation of the various countries we plan to traverse.
I hope to be joined in Paris by two of my brothers who were inadvertently responsible for my becoming an Imp collector, they both owned Imps when I was still a lazy schoolboy in Ireland. So Ciaran and Sean will drive the final kilometers with us from Paris to Coventry.
Our journey will begin on Valentine’s Day 2013 when we head north out of Johannesburg and cross the border into Botswana by nightfall.
I am dedicating the entire trip to our late brother Gerry who passed away last year.
