A Bitcoin car driven by the “Bitcoin Ambassadors” team competes in the 8,000 kilometer race of the Baltic Sea Circle Rally, illustrating competitors and campers along the way.
Two Bitcoin Defenders (BTC)—Cercatrova, the democratically elected president of the German-speaking Einundzwanzig Bitcoin community, and his co-driver, Daktari—embarked on the orange pill adventure this week, attempting to traverse nine northern European countries in their Bitcoin-branded car .
Speaking to Cointelegraph from somewhere above the Arctic Circle, Cercatrova explained:
“The whole rally is a charity rally. There are 150 teams or cars. It starts in Hamburg and goes up to Denmark, Sweden, Norway and around the Baltic Sea. It’s about 8,000 kilometers, 16 days, and we’re the only Bitcoin team here; none of the other teams are cryptocurrency teams.”
The goal is to “bring Bitcoin closer to the people” and, at the same time, raise funds for two sources: a Panamanian coffee producer and a Salvadoran ride-sharing app built on the Lightning Network. Naturally, during the trip they have been “giving the orange pill”, or introducing people to Bitcoin.
Christian, founder of Seedor — a German-based metallic Bitcoin backup — who avidly follows their journey, told Cointelegraph that while in Norway, they “gave the orange pill to the camp.” The duo showed the camp owner how to pay in Bitcoin:
Orange pilling the campground owner in Norway
If you take your time, listen and explain to people, they will understand we could pay our place here in #Bitcoin pic.twitter.com/OReIxQKHuA
— cercatrova⚡️ (@cercatrova_21) June 21, 2023
Giving the orange pill to the camp owner in Norway
If you take your time, listen and explain to people, they will understand that we could pay our place here in #Bitcoin
Cercatrova told Cointelegraph that, so far, they have discussed Bitcoin with at least 30 people as part of the rally in casual conversations with interested observers. Besides, passers-by and those ahead can scan the QR code on the side of the car to receive free satoshis, or small amounts of Bitcoin, to start their Bitcoin journey.
“So when someone sees us and asks about Bitcoin, ‘How does it work?’ we can take people to our car and say, ‘Okay, just install a wallet and you’re good to go in about 30 seconds.’ And they’re amazed: “I didn’t have to fill out anything, I didn’t have to get a passport or anything. It just works.”
The car is also equipped with a candy machine that accepts Bitcoin, so newbies can spend their new sats on candy, “just to see how it works,” Cercatrova explained.
For the Bitcoin enthusiasts back home, the car is Lightning ready. From anywhere in the world you can control a turntable with remote playback and a speaker with a Lightning switch. Fans and followers around the world send their song requests to the Lightning-ready Telegram group, paying less than a dollar for the courtesy.
Choose which song we will listen to at the #BalticSeaCircle Rally and honk our horn over Lightning All sats will go to the project (from @FPupusas), 2 indians in panama, who make coffee for sats and to the creator of the jukebox ☕️ pic.twitter.com/x6IsuhPZZA
— cercatrova⚡️ (@cercatrova_21) June 20, 2023
Choose which song we will listen to at the #BalticSeaCircle Rally and honk on Lightning All sats will go to the project (from @FPupusas), 2 indians in panama, who make coffee for sats and the creator of the jukebox ☕️
Lightning enthusiasts can also honk their car horn thousands of miles away. The process uses a lightning switch It lights up when you have received enough sats. Cercatrova explains it:
“In my Twitter feed there is also the QR code, where you can scan the Lightning invoice. And when you pay that, it’s about 3,000 sats to honk once. And then our car honks!”
The horn is comically loud and playful, while the Lightning jukebox’s playlist has included music ranging from metal to Mozart and from German folk tunes to crypto classics like “Pump It Up.” Cercatrova explained that musical variation is a great source of fun and motivation:
“One time there’s death metal, and on the other side it’s Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, and it’s really crazy.”
Till the date, The Bitcoin Ambassadors rally team has raised roughly 4 million satoshis ($1,200) for charity, though Cercatrova added that “the next few days and the willingness to send more satoshis” could raise the figure. Drivers are halfway there and expect to finish by the end of June.
As vital research for this article, reporter Joe Hall not only honked his horn during the phone interview, but also queued up a famous Rick Astley song.
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