FOUR James Watt College automotive engineering lecturers are going all out to raise money for a cancer charity on a ‘Bratislava or Bust’ road trip.

The crew members, John Currie, Austin Walters, Ryan Horn and Hugh Ducat, will start off in Canterbury, Kent heading off on a seven-day trip through France, Belgium, Lichtenstein, Italy, Slovenia and Slovakia en-route to Bratislava. They will experience a set of daily ‘Top Gear’ style challenges on the Student Adventures trip, testing their ingenuity, map reading skills and ability to barter and negotiate in a foreign language.

Austin Walters Hugh Ducat, Ryan Horn and John Currie

Lecturer John Currie said: “Vehicles entering the race must be worth less than £500. We are obviously trying to raise as much money as possible for the charity, so we asked around local garages to see if anyone was prepared to donate one, and we were fortunate that Crawfurd Car Centre in Greenock came up trumps.

“The team are calling out to all local businesses interested in sponsoring the vehicle. We will put your company logo on the car –for only £100 you will be able to advertise your business in seven different European countries (eight if you count Britain)!”

Austin Walters, lecturer and fellow crew member, added "The Prostate Cancer Charity are the UK's leading voluntary organisation working with people affected by Prostate Cancer. As four males, this is a relevant charity for us to support. We are hoping this trip will be a trailblazer for our students to follow in years to come and perhaps make it into an annual event.

“The car is currently parked in the college’s new state-of–the-art workshops at the Finnart Campus in Greenock, and our motor vehicle repair students will be helping us prepare it for the grueling journey. Bratislava or Bust promises to be a challenging unforgettable road trip, raising money for a great cause.”
Anyone who would like to support, by either sponsoring directly or sponsoring a logo on the car, get in touch at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The team hope to donate the car to a college in Bratislava at the end of the journey before flying home.