Vintage tractor trek for Gaza will pass along Mayo coast
A Galway man is driving the length of Ireland along the 2,800km Wild Atlantic Way in a slow-moving open-top vintage tractor to raise funds for the people of Gaza.
Pat Murphy, a teacher and father of four from Corofin, will brave the elements in his 1962 David Brown 850, which can only reach a maximum speed of 24kph.
He began his trek on Thursday at Malin Head and will be accompanied by his friend Tony Harrison from Ballina, who will be driving a camper van where he will sleep each night.
The drive from Malin Head in Donegal to Mizen Head in Cork should only take eight hours in a modern vehicle on a more direct route, but Pat expects his tractor will do it in about two weeks, taking the coastal Wild Atlantic Way.
“The tractor can probably do a maximum speed of 24kph so it will be a long journey, but for a very worthy cause,” said Pat, who teaches woodwork at Wesley College Dublin and lives in Sallins, Kildare, with his family.
“It is a 62-year-old David Brown that has been fully restored. It has no power steering or cabin, just fresh air. If it rains, I’ll be just going through it.
“There is no suspension either and not a lot of comfort so I will have an extra cushion on the seat, which will make a huge difference.
“I will also be wearing a lot of factor 50 and a sombrero hat to protect me from the sun and it can actually get very cool in an open top tractor so I have a heavy coat with me too.”
All proceeds will go to the humanitarian aid organisation Concern Worldwide and its Gaza appeal. Pat chose Concern because of his past involvement with the charity as a volunteer in Rwanda in 1995 and 1996 after the brutal genocide that occurred there.
“I really value the work that Concern does, especially after working for them in refugee camps after the Rwanda genocide,” he said.
“The people of Gaza really need our help today. Anybody who has been the pictures on television knows that the people there need our support.”
Another friend, Brendan Joyce, transported Pat’s tractor from Corofin, where he grew up, to Malin Head and will collect it when they reach Ireland’s most south-westerly point at Mizen Head.
Pat hoped to raise at least €5,000 on his GoFundMe page called ‘Malin to Mizen – Charity Tractor Run for Concern’ and has already surpassed that figure with €6,000 donated so far.
Pat said they plan to drive for eight hours each day and to take 15 minute breaks every two hours and they are looking forward to driving through the many towns and villages that dot the Wild Atlantic Way.
“We will have signs up on the vehicles to show people how they can support us on our GoFundMe page and I will be posting my progress of the journey each day on my Facebook and Instagram pages,” he said.
To support Pat Murphy’s tractor fundraising trek for Gaza, go to his GoFundMe page https://gofund.me/f7046b8d and his Instagram page is called Murphsmeander_malintomizen.