This section covers all the Ws: who, where, why, what, when, and, erm, how. 
A daily record of the plans made and the decisions taken. 
Click on the articles below for the latest news.

Can you believe this is the 200th blog post on our pokey little corner of the internet? If that isn't a good enough reason to write a post taking stock of where we are, our achievements and what is still to do, I don't know what is. So where are we? We have registered three cars for the event and have five of the six drivers sorted. Carl is still looking for his co-driver, but Lisa and I are completely invested in driving Team: Dirty Martin around Europe, as are Richie an

So the Facebook algorithm has been doing its job, as it started showing sunglasses ads after I clicked on one link. Now I'm being bombarded with adverts for eyewear endorsed by everyone from Oasis' Noel Gallagher to F1 driver Oscar Piastri.   The Gallagher offerings are designed by FINLAY, an independent British eyewear brand founded in 2012. They handcraft their own frames and grind their own lenses, and have stores in Notting Hill and Soho, so you get the picture of the qua

Our Abarth, like all modern cars, doesn't have a drip rail - that little strip of raised metal designed to stop rain cascading over the roof and down into the window. So, like everyone out there at some time, I've ended up with an elbow full of cold water. I sometimes like to open my window a little to let some air circulate, but if there has been even the lightest drizzle, my right arm gets dripped on as the water on the roof gently cascades down the roof. I can't crack th

According to reports, the UK is the second-largest market for aftermarket vehicle upgrades in Europe. The industry was valued at around £7.8 billion in 2025, and is forecast to reach £9.5 billion by 2030. The manufacturing sector is worth around £12 billion, with approximately 1,600 businesses operating in it. The Top 10 most popular modifications in the UK are: 1. Alloy Wheels 2. Number Plate Personalisation  3. Exhaust Upgrades  4. LED Lighting  5. Suspension & Lowering K

So goodbye to 227 and hello to 60... or rather, 17. Confused? Let me explain. As I detailed in this post , getting the original design (number 227) made and fitted would, as they say in the trade, be a faff. It needs to bend three ways on the bonnet and fit around the wing mirrors. Can be done, but wouldn't be easy or may need compromising the design. I found an alternative design (number 60) that isn't as striking as the original but is more on-brand and clearer. The

After the trip to see the lovely guys at Colour Create, my mind has been whirring. I need to rethink the design as the current scheme is too difficult to apply to the magnetic strip and then onto the car. Not going to lie, this is a massive blow. But there is no use wallowing; it's time to find a solution to the problem, which means going back to the drawing board. <sigh> One thing Barry and Kevin at Colour Create said was that big, rectangular graphics are easy to produce

The perfect phone case doesn't exist. Yeah, whatever! Look at this bad boy! This case ticks more boxes than a vindictive health inspector doing a random spot check at a dodgy, backstreet kebab shop. Classy, minimal design? Check! Featuring the iconic Martini Racing stripes? Check! Customisable to include our car number? Check! Available in matte or glossy finishes? Check! MagSafe compliant? Check! I found this on Etsy while looking for Martini Racing t-shirts for the trip, an

We visited Colour Create yesterday and met Barry and Kevin. I rambled on about the trip born from a stupid idea, fuelled by alcohol and fed by a 'you only live once' attitude. They initially looked at us like we were daft, I reckon they are right to be honest! I showed them images of what we would like. I explained my reservations about sticking a magnet over the contours of the car. They had a sample of the automotive-grade magnetic sticker, which was thinner than I expe

I've been scouring the internet for a good, reliable local printer to see if they can help us with our livery. There are lots of choices, but I was struggling to find one that stood out and that I felt comfortable with. I was in the office and noticed our company had big displays, so I got in touch with our Communications Manager, who tipped me off to a company called Colour Create. She raved about their service and quality and advised me to drop her and our company's name,

While browsing for some Martini Racing bits ahead of the summer trip, I stumbled across this beauty. Distinctive yet minimal, this looks the mutt's nuts. This then sent me down a rabbit hole of looking for VW T2 vans on eBay, and the results were initially surprising. For a few grand, I could pick up a '70s T2 with around 50000 miles on the clock - result. But, in the immortal words of Prince, "all that glitters aint gold". After examining the pictures a little closer, th

I was messing around with Claude, the A.I. app, as it looks like a decent alternative to ChatGPT - not that I can find much wrong with ChatGPT, but variety is the spice of life and all that. I'm not up to manipulating A.I. to achieve what I want, so I'd run some tests to see what it produces. I asked the app to create a logo for our team, completing the rally from Liverpool to Monaco and back. I asked it to make it using the name 'Dirty Martin', the Martini Racing colours,

I stumbled across this advert from the 2012 Super Bowl the other day. I'd never seen it before, and it had me giggling. No spoilers here, except that the title of the post is a translation of the first line spoken in the ad. Oh yeah, it is all in Italian...deliberately. Click below to watch. The full translation is: Line 1: “Che cosa guardi, eh?” (repeated twice… followed by a slap!) Translation: “ What are you looking at, huh?” Line 2: “Mi stai spogliando con gli occhi?”

Hot on the heels of the dashboard in 'Bert' doing an impression of Blackpool Illuminations , Abbie decided to join the party with a light of her own after a trip down a particularly bumpy road. Over the weekend, we went to our friend's 50th birthday party. They live in an idyllic hamlet up in Lancashire, about 30 minutes away. We were running a little late, so I used Google Maps to give me the quickest possible route to their house. Next time, I'll study the route before b

It is official, we are officially registered for the Monte Carlo or Bust Rally: Black Forest Gateau 2026!!! It has been a long time...

If I change the car's scheme to the new, fresher Martini Racing or the Castrol Oil one , I will be copying Scalextric vehicles rather...

After the stunning Castrol-themed Toyotas caught my attention , I delved into the world of rally cars. I discussed this with Carl on...

So that is Poole to Liverpool to Loch Lomond to Liverpool again in the last few weeks.  An impressive 700+ miles in a tiny city car, 200...

It's the weekend.  How about something fun? After a break from chasing down unicorn cars and perfect alloys, I made a playlist inspired...

As our car will be decked out in Martini Racing livery, I have decided our team will be called ‘Dirty Martini’ for no other reason than...