We’re taking this honeymoon to Invercargill!
In addition to each other, Nelson newlyweds Amy Langfield and Shaw Elmsly are enamoured with Minis. They own four of the cultural phenomena and had 16 parked up at their wedding on 25 January.
They’d also got behind the wheel for the Pork Pie Charity Run event in previous years, an event which emulates the timeless Kiwi film Goodbye Pork Pie with Minis travelling the length of Aotearoa.
It also revs up funds for KidsCan - a charity that supports tamariki in hardship.
Amy says her and her new husband’s decision to get their married life accelerated by driving from Paihia to Invers for a good cause was an easy one to make.
“We wanted to do something fun on our honeymoon, and we literally couldn’t think of anything more fun to do than touring in our little car, spending time with all our friends, and getting dressed up,” she says.
“We asked for people to donate money to the Pork Pie charity instead of [wedding gifts] for us, and if they wanted to give us a gift, then they could give us some fuel vouchers or money towards the trip to make it extra special.
“Every day was really cool, occasionally we got to go to the schools, and they loved seeing all the Minis and tooting the horns, and that’s why we do it really is to raise money for the kids.
“We don’t have any personal connections to KidsCan, but Shaw has in a previous life fostered a child, and so Kidscan were always the first people to give help when it was needed.”
Amy and Shaw’s team known as ‘Beauty and the Beast on Honeymoon’ raised a total of $4355 for KidsCan.
Their Mini of choice was their 1978 Mini Estate nicknamed Moto Moto after a hippo character in the animated film Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa.
Amy says her former and current Minis also had hippo-related names since the cars from behind resemble the animal charging towards you.
She says the journey was occasionally trouble in paradise with blown fuses, an overheating engine and confirmation that Minis aren’t friends with heavy rain.
“When we left Paihia [on 4 April] we were going through torrential rain and Minis are not known to be great cars in the wet, and with the Estate when the rain hits the back windows, it goes down into the seal and comes back up into the car,” she says.
“It’s one of those things, but it’s part of the fun as well. “Having a modern car is really nice, and it’s comfy, but it’s not the same.”
Amy, Shaw and the other 50 Minis made it to Invercargill on 9 April. Their marriage should be easy as pie after surviving 2300km in a cramped space.
