The Details: Don McLester Adventuring Stupidity Scholarship
Also known as the ‘Don Memorial Asshat Award (except he won’t fucking die)’.
This is a scholarship is dedicated to the pursuit of adventuring stupidity. The winner gets $5000 to spend on any of The Adventurists‘ adventures in 2026.
The deadline for applications is 31st January 2026.
1. Essential details
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Who the hell is Don McLester?
A legend of adventure. And our chum.
Don has now taken part in twelve adventures with us since 2012, and his wife Sarah has done four. They live in the US of A and decided they wanted to help other people do stupid adventures because of the massive impact it's had on their lives. Mostly good impact apparently (after it stops hurting).
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What can the $5000 be spent on?
All direct costs of adventuring
Including flights, relevant gear and clothing, visas, internal travel and all relevant on the road costs such as accommodation, food, drink and vehicle repairs.
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Which adventures does this apply to?
All adventures in 2026
You can go on a Monkey Run by yourself or split the funds to help team mates with their costs and do a Rickshaw Run or Mongol Rally. Check out full list below.
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Who can apply?
Anyone. With one exception.
If you’ve got a trust fund or Daddy pays your rent even though you’re 37, it’s time for you to press the back button. This scholarship is for anyone that heeds the call to stupidity but is a bit short on cash to make it work.
2. How to apply
3. Important dates
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Applications open
1st January 2026
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Deadline to apply
31st January 2026
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Winner announced
Mid February 2026
4. The $5000 question
The winner can take part solo, or recruit team mates for a Rickshaw Run or Mongol Rally and split the cash with team members.
The money can be spent on anything directly related to taking part in the adventure. That includes things like flights, relevant gear and clothing, visas, food and drink on the road, vehicle repairs and 'express roadside fines'.
You can't spend it on anything illegal or unrelated to the adventure.
What if $5000 doesn't cover everything?
What if the winner doesn't spend all the money?
5. Eligible adventures - 2026 prize
- Rickshaw Run Sri Lanka March 2026
- Monkey Run Morocco April 2026
- Monkey Run Peru 2026**
- Monkey Run Mongolia July 2026
- Rickshaw Run Himalaya July 2026
- Mongol Rally 2026
- Rickshaw Run Himalaya September 2026**
- Rickshaw Run India September 2026
- Monkey Run Mongolia September 2026
- Rickshaw Run Sri Lanka October 2026
- Monkey Run Morocco October 2026
** These adventures are either full or nearly full so availability might be limited.
Head to our home page and have a poke around to find out more about the adventures.
6. What's the catch?
OK there is one catch.
Ah fuck it, let's call it two.
There are two catches...
You have to be up for taking some photos and videos of your adventure. We don't expect anything fancy, just a willingness to make an effort with your phone camera. We'll give you plenty of tips and info beforehand.
The second catch is that you have to be up for being featured on our social media channels, our website and in press coverage. You'll be helping to spread the word about the scholarship so we can reach more people when the 2026 applications open.
Doing a bit of promo in exchange for thousands of dollars to spend on seeking chaos? It's the deal of the century. And we'll make you look tall in all the photos, we promise.
If you have some kind of ethical objection to helping us promote the scholarship, like a social media vegan who throws paint on people taking selfies, please for the sake of all the adventure Gods old and new, don't apply.
7. Danger Warning
Your chances of being seriously injured or dying as a result of taking part are high. Individuals who have taken part in past Adventurists' adventures have been permanently disfigured, seriously disabled and even lost their life.
This is not a glorified holiday, it's an unsupported adventure and so by its very nature extremely risky. You really are on your own and you really are putting both your health and life at risk. This is what makes them adventures.
The winner of the scholarship will also need to sign an extra disclaimer to cover the terms and conditions of the funding and to confirm that the scholarship isn't to blame if they decide to take part in a dangerous adventure and end up getting injured.
