The Silk Road Race is a charity rally from

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

to the capital of

Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...

Dushanbe Dushanbe is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Tajikistan. , Dushanbe had a population of 1,564,700, with this population being largely Tajiks, Tajik. Until 1929, the city was known in Russian as Dyushambe, and from 1929 to 1961 as St ...

. The Silk Road Race is organised by Partenza Intelligente, a non-profit cultural association based in Lainate (Milan), Italy. The first edition of the rally was launched on 31 July 2010.

Adventure

The Silk Road Race typically launches from Villa Litta Visconti Borromeo, a historic palace of the 16th century in Lainate near Milan, Italy, in the last week of July. The teams participate in the Start Night launch event with many people and a rock concert during the launching procedure. The teams can participate in the rally with any motor-based vehicle, there is no limit based on engine displacement or vehicle type. Silk road race 2010 edition team

Routes

There are typically three main routes to Tajikistan. The northern route, from Milan to Tajikistan via east Europe:

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

, and

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

; the middle route:

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

and then crossing the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...

; or the south route:

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, and then

. However, the route is free; teams can choose their route to

, but they must arrive at

in 3 weeks to join the finish party. The Silk Road Race is approximately 8.000 km long.

Entry fees

The Silk Road Race charges an entry fee to cover the costs of running the event. All funds generated from charity fees are donated to a project started by Cesvi that provides water and sanitation in the south region of Tajikistan. The Silk Road Race 2012 entry fee for a car or a truck team was €499 and €250 for a motorcycle. A team comprises a single vehicle: a car/truck or a motorcycle. The Silk Road Race 2012 minimum charity fee for cars/trucks teams was €950 and €300 for a motorcycle team.

References

{{reflist

External links

CESVI Description of the Silk Road Race Milano-Dushanbe charity rally

Silk Road Race official site

Press coverage of the Silk Road Race Milano-Dushanbe charity rally