Take four Fife friends, two old bangers and some of Europe’s most twisty roads and what do you get?
The answer is the adventure of a lifetime and hundreds of pounds raised for charity.
Buckhaven couple Claire Bain, 23, and Ryan Wight, 22, took on the Rust2Rome challenge along with friends Damon Glover, 25, from Leven, and Methil man Scott McPhail, 20.
The aim was to drive more than 3,000 miles from Edinburgh to Rome, through some of the continent’s most spectacular scenery, in a car which cost less than £500.
Claire and mechanic Ryan took to the roads in an old Ford Ka, while Damon and Scott embarked on the 12-day extravaganza in an ancient Audi.
“It was amazing,” said Claire, an admin assistant with Fife Council. “There were about 30 of us altogether in 16 cars and one motorbike, and it was some experience.
“We had just been sitting talking in the house one night when someone mentioned Rust2Rome, and the more we spoke about it, we thought it would be a good idea for a road trip.”
“We decided to take part in this rally and raise money for charity at the same time.”
Claire and Ryan chose Alzheimer Scotland as Claire lost her grandfather to the illness in 2010, while Damon and Scott were collecting for Macmillan Nurses.
So far Claire and Ryan have managed to raise around £1,800 and are still collecting through the Just Giving webpage, while their friends have amassed around £1,500 so far.
“The journey let us see some spectacular sights, taking us through many cities along the way, including London, Paris, Monaco and Rome,” Claire added.
“We stayed in tents at campsites along the route and we just had a great time.”
Rust2Rome has been organised by Marko Fleming since 2006 and has raised thousands of pounds for various charities.
He describes the challenge as being like Top Gear withouth the support vehicles and has devised a route which takes in winding mountain roads from films such as the Italian Job, as well as major cities.