Brains are the only things worth having in this world, no matter whether one is a crow or a man ― L. Frank Baum, The Wizard of Oz

Rally fever is ramping up in the Whizzer household. Flights are booked and we have started delving into the mysterious and frightening world of visa applications. The Rally Facebook page is bursting with news of what the other teams are up to, and photos of their choices of transport (calling them ‘cars’ would be a step to far in most cases).

The Whizzers, like Frank Baum, appreciate the value of brains, and when traversing 15,000km of questionable (at best) terrain on motorcycles , protecting our noggins tends to work its way up the list of priorities, almost to the esteemed level of anti-diarrhoea medication.

Helmets are of course a given – but ordinary helmets are boring and we may have been feeling a little left out of all the vehicle-pimping shenanigans going on by the other teams. But the Whizzers are not ones to be left out for long – so one trip to Bunnings and three cans of Dulux spray paint later – WHA LA! We have THE most awesome helmets – Aussie style! A shout out to Dulux for an awesome product – not only was it easy to use and went on like a dream, but when I accidently (I promise) dropped Peter’s helmet shortly after (as in about five minutes) the masterpiece was complete – not one crack! Dulux – I’m going to tag you in this post – so feel free to donate some cashola to our awesome charity Cool Earth!

Once the helmets were done, we packed our bikes into their crate (the same one we used on the Tasmanian Test Trip) and they are currently on a cruise en route to London. Big shout out to fellow rallier Trevor Arrow, a UK resident who has kindly offered to receive and babysit the crate until our arrival. Trevor, may you be blessed with similar acts of kindness on your journey.

Finally, we have begun the visa process, albeit with a bumpy start. We applied for our Mongolian visas only to have them refused – we were too early and you can only apply within three months of your arrival date. So much for enthusiasm. The next country on our list is Russia and we are in the process of gathering the plethora of paperwork required for this application. Luckily we’ve never been afflicted with a communicable disease or dangerous mental disorder or been involved in armed conflicts, nor do we have specialised skills or training with explosives, nuclear, biological or chemical weapons (unless I read it wrong, and that last one is a requirement, not a ground for refusal?).

With only a few weeks to go until The Start, there is bound to be lots happening in the Whizzer world. Keep posted for updates!