PORLOCK hoteliers Tim and Anne Riley set off today (Friday) on a gruelling 1,800-mile car rally to raise money for a charity close to Anne's heart.

Her father was the first person in the country to be given insulin in 1923 and all money raised in the sponsored rally will be used to support diabetes sufferers.

And by coincidence, organisers the Classic Rally Association have revealed that Tim and Anne's 1939 Lancia will be numbered one.

The couple, who have run The Oaks Hotel in Porlock for the past 15 years, are taking on 170 other competitors in the Winter Challenge rally in France.

Anne said: "My father developed the illness before insulin was invented so for three years he lived on starvation diet, which included a lot of cabbage. Then he became the first person outside America to have insulin."

Tim bought the Lancia a year ago and has spent his spare time doing it up and making it 'rally-proof' for the endurance race ahead.

The Lancia will have to be up to the job because it will face some of France's most challenging roads as the pair take on the marathon.

The route will pass through spectacular scenery including the Alps and finishes in Cannes, in the South of France, next Thursday.

Anne said neither of them had ever done anything like this before, but were looking forward to the challenge.

But she added: "I'm a bit worried at the prospect of spending days in a specialised pre-war rally car with no heater in the middle of winter.

"Because we are the number one car of the 170 entrants we should be in the lead for at least the first 100 yards."

Anyone wishing to sponsor Anne and Tim should contact the hotel.

Photo: Steve Guscott.