Routes
There are an array of suggested routes that teams may take. After setting off from Goodwood or one of the other Western European start points (including France, Italy, and Spain), participants then generally proceed to a launch party in Prague where they converge. Typical routes then head for Moscow, Kiev or Istanbul, though teams have travelled as far north as the Arctic Circle and as far south as Iran, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. Teams taking the Ukraine/Russia route or the more southerly Turkey and Iran route often converge at Samarkand, Uzbekistan before proceeding north-east for Mongolia.
The final leg of the rally takes surviving vehicles into Mongolia and on to finish in the capital, Ulan Bator. None of the available routes are comfortable or safe: damage to cars, robberies and minor injuries are common. Year on year as the rally gains popularity, more and more car accidents occur and many participants require hospital treatment. On 6 August 2010, two British participants died and one other team mate was seriously hurt after a road accident in Iran (near the border between Iran and Turkmenistan).
Depending on the route taken, the total distance driven is around eight to ten thousand miles (almost thirteen thousand kilometres) and most teams complete the rally within three to four weeks.
Read more about this topic: Mongol Rally
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