TWO friends are taking part in a fund raising rally by driving more than 10,000 miles to Mongolia in a worn out car worth only £450.

The students who study Geography at Manchester University thought they would use their free time wisely rather than spend all summer drinking.

Adam Smith, 21 from Nazeing and his friend Freya Liiv, 20 from Chesthunt are participating in the Mongol Rally 2009 and begin their adventure on July 18.

They will drive the Kia Pride car to Ulan Baatar to raise money for the Christina Nobel Children's Foundation (CNCF) which works in Vietnam and Mongolia on a range of projects.

Adam said: "We decided to support CNCF primarily because they help the street kids and orphans of Ulan Baatar who live under the streets where the hot pipes protect them from the city which is the coldest capital in the world."

The pair hope to raise £1,000 for the charity and have so far reached a third of their target through sponsorship, and are hoping local businesses will also offer support.

Their six week route to Ulan Baatar will take them down through Eastern Europe to Istanbul, across Turkey and Iran, up through Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan then across Kazakhstan and Russia to Mongolia.

Once at their destination they will donate their car to the local CNCF operation then help teach English to the children on the programme.

Adam said: "We'll then get the Trans Siberian railway to Moscow and fly back to the UK from there."

To sponsor Adam and Freya visit justgiving.com/adamandfreya or email adamamirsmith@googlemail.com. f