ADVENTURER Dr Brian Cunningham is making good progress in his world record attempt to become the first person to make a kite powered crossing across the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.

The Bolton-based explorer has been blighted for the last 10 days by a lack of strong winds to propel him across the rough terrain.

But the expedition team, made up of Dr Cunningham, wife Christine, Kieron Bradley and Peter Ash, has begun to pick up speed, with the team almost back on schedule. The group is currently in the Mongolian town of Baruunbayan-Ulaan.

They arrived in Mongolia on September 3 and travelled 600 miles to the Altay region where they began their trip.

They made a promising start, travelling 20 miles at speeds of up to 40mph in their high-tech £8,000 buggys.

But the next few days saw the team grind to a halt -- with the buggys reaching speeds of just four miles-per-hour.

Members of the team have crashed -- but luckily escaped injury.

Now the team are reaching speeds of 60mph -- covering nearly 90 miles in just two days.

Dr Cunningham, aged 61, of Chorley Old Road, said in his personal diary on the expedition website: "We are now making fast progress. For the first ten days we were struck by windless days and progress was patchy. Every so often we had a spectacular day with big mileage and then we'd be struck for a day waiting for wind.

"It was hard to establish any momentum. We have just had our best days in succession. Our support vehicles could not keep up with us.

"The expedition is now going strong."

For all the latest news on Dr Cunningham's progress, go to www.gobi -kites.com

The buggy works by a kite, which is attached to the rear of the vehicle and wind power propels it forward. It has thick hi-tech wheels which have been specifically designed to withstand treacherous conditions.

The expedition is currently being filmed for a documentary for a satellite TV channel. It is expected the foursome will complete the trip by the end of the month.

For all the latest news on Dr Cunningham's progress, go to www.gobi -kites.com