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Join world-record chaser as he journeys on the ‘Road of Hell’

Cape to Cape team with their VW Touareg

Adventurer and world-record chaser Rainer Zietlow and his team, will be relying on Inmarsat’s connectivity to share their second attempt to drive ‘Cape to Cape’ in a VW Touareg in less than 10 days, with a worldwide audience.

In 2014, Rainer’s first attempt resulted in a new world record time of 21 days, 16 hours; however an unlucky accident, which wasn’t their fault, lost him 13 days on the road.

The race against the clock starts on 11 September at 10am local time from Cape Agulhas, the southern-most tip of Africa. The land-based route, which is more than 19,000 km (11,806 miles) long, covers a total of 19 countries, including Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Egypt, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Germany, and Denmark, finishing in Nordknapp, northern Norway.

Real-time updates

Driving 24/7 in five-hour shifts, with team mates Marius Biela, photographer and videographer, and Sam Roach, CEO of Volkswagen Racing UK, Inmarsat’s BGAN service will be used to share all the action as it unfolds in real-time updates, blogs, photos and video on the Cape to Cape 2.0 website and social media platforms.

The vehicular terminal from Cobham SATCOM comprises a discreet, lightweight antenna, which is magnetically mounted on the roof and an in-car unit, to enable the crew to access Inmarsat BGAN’s simultaneous voice and broadband service, while on the move.

In addition, Inmarsat’s IsatData Pro will track and monitor the car’s progress along the route. The global two-way short message service for machine-to machine (M2M) communications will send back positional data from the VW Touareg to the tracking map, every five minutes.

‘Road of Hell’

“Driving from Cape to Cape in world record time will be a unique challenge,” said Rainer. “There are a lot of dangers and uncertainties, which make everyday a spectacular experience.”

Thanks to Inmarsat’s connectivity, fans worldwide can follow Rainer over the course of the challenge and join in his adventure as he journeys over the ‘Road of Hell’ African mountain ranges in Kenya, and experiences freezing temperatures in Norway and searing 50C heat in Sudan.

He will also be able to highlight the charity that he will be supporting along the way, the SOS Children’s Village in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, donating 10 cents for every kilometre travelled.

The VW Touareg 3.0 TDI car has only been slightly modified for the world record drive, with rollover bars and a massive additional tank to allow distances up to 3,000 km (1,864 miles),

The vehicle will only come to a standstill throughout the challenge for refuelling and border checks.

For more information about the challenge and to follow Rainer and his team go to www.touareg-c2c2.com.