Spring Rally breaks all records

The internet is full of motivational posters about how great things often has humble beginnings. Most people just hit “share” when they see the italic wording against a backdrop of a random forest. A few people choose to act.

Supercar rallies and the like have poor reputations that are largely deserved. Inevitably, they involve a group of self-absorbed, Instagram-hero rich kids traversing Europe in cars paid for by a trust fund. Tasteless vehicle wraps are the order of the day, along with wild parties and a general life of excess.

Thankfully, the Spring Rally literally couldn’t be more different.

Now in its 5^th year, the event welcomed 55 cars and 113 participants on an invitation-only basis. Organised by one man with a dream, his request for anonymity is clear evidence of his humility.

Here we have a group of friends who come together once a year to enjoy the Western Cape’s finest roads and to raise money for charity. Putting the “drive” in “charity drive” is achieved through not just supercars, but gorgeous classics too.

This isn’t a competition to see who can waste as much money on champagne as possible. This is a gathering of petrolheads with a shared social purpose and a love of the automobile.

Instead of trying to dodge the law, the Spring Rally embraces it. Not only did Western Cape Premier Alan Winde see the participants off in the morning from Motor Studio at Lourensford, but the City of Cape Town also arranged a fully functioning police checkpoint as a road safety awareness initiative where breathalysers were handed out to participants.

The Cape Town to Arniston route was also policed by the Spring Rally Finemaster. Rather than brandishing handcuffs and blue lights, his role was simple – ensure that even more money makes it into the charity pot. Even the smallest transgression earned the perpetrator a charitable fine.

One can easily imagine the camaraderie among friends against this backdrop.

In 2018, the Spring Rally raised R57,000 against a target of R25,000. This year, the target of R75,000 was smashed with a spectacular R200,000 raised.

The proceeds are donated to Atlantic Hope, a place of safety for abandoned and vulnerable babies. Based in Sea Point, they work with Social Services across the Western Cape. Marilyn May, a Capetonian nurse, started Atlantic Hope by converting her lounge and dining room in her apartment into a nursery.

The reasons why these babies land up in the temporary care of Atlantic Hope are as varied as they are traumatising. The little ones only have one thing in common – Atlantic Hope provides them with exactly that. Hope. A future.

Over 100 babies have passed through their doors. The importance of this work cannot be emphasised enough.

More information and photos of the rally  here:

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