Rolling on 60
Antique car rally from London to Jerusalem to be held in celebration of Israel’s 60th Independence Day
Put it into third gear. While most of us eagerly await cheap airline tickets from Tel-Aviv to London, some innovative souls will be driving all the way from England to Israel this upcoming May —and in vintage luxury cars at that.
This unique antique car rally is a unique project celebrating Israel’s 60th Independence Day, and the participating vehicles will be proudly displayed at the Knesset in Jerusalem. The rally is sponsored by the Jewish National Fund (JNF), a large charitable organization in England which raises funds for Israel.
The drivers are expected to cross the Mediterranean Sea in a ferry or with the aid of a cargo plane. Several prominent Jewish businessmen from the United States, Switzerland, and Ireland are also expected to join this special delegation, and have already brought their cars to England to that very end.
Some participants in this rally will not be returning to England. With the support of the Nefesh B’Nefesh organization they plan to utilize this rally as a unique opportunity to make aliyah to Israel in style. Who needs a crowded plane when you can take the scenic route in an antique car?
Participating in this rally comes at a rather hefty cost of roughly NIS 130,000 (about $35,534) per participant. The lucky participant who receives the honor of leading this motorized convoy and driving through the Knesset gates first, will have to pay three times that amount.
The vehicles which will take place in this rally also carry a whopping price-tag, and are hardly your run of the mill cars. Taking part in this convoy will be vintage Porsches, Aston Martins, Jaguars and Rolls Royces.
Some of the older cars participating in this rally are a 1942 Cadillac and a 1948 Rolls Royce which will be turning 60 right along with the State of Israel. All in all, the vehicles taking part in the rally have a reported value of some NIS 30 million ($82 million).
“We will probably be able to raise over 250,000 British pounds ($496,000) for residents of the Negev as part of this event,” said Abraham Kellman, the JNF’s representative in Israel, who recently enlisted the support of Knesset Director-General Avi Balashnikov for the rally.
Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik is also expected to greet rally participants as they enter the Knesset gates.
