Firstly, I would like to wish you a Happy New Year. Your continued support for my Enduro Africa fundraising has been truly appreciated.
In October, between 2nd and 13th, my African motorcycle adventure finally takes place. My preparations are well in hand including participating in the London Marathon (supporting Seafarers UK
http://www.seafarers-uk.org/) as a way of getting fit and losing a few of those middle-aged kilos. I am not sure which event will be the most challenging but if I survive the 26.2 mile run on April 13 I am hoping that 2,000km on a motorbike will be that much easier.
For those of you who have been keeping track of my fundraising via my blog (
http://enduro-africa-2008.blogspot.com/) you will know that after nearly 16 months I have reached £10,500 with a further £9,500 left to raise if I am to hit my self-imposed target of £20,000. The official Enduro Africa 2008 beneficiaries are – Unicef, Sentebale and the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, for which the organisers’ aim is to raise at least £300,000. The money will contribute towards charitable work in South Africa and Lesotho, including: Unicef’s campaign Unite for Children/Unite against AIDS, to prevent the transmission of HIV from mother to baby; Sentebale’s support for the most vulnerable children – the abandoned, abused, neglected, orphaned and ill; and NMCF’s commitment to help children and young people overcome many obstacles to living healthy, productive and fulfilled lives.
In addition, I am supporting two personal favourite charities – Riders For Health and NUMAST Welfare Funds. Many of you will require no introduction to the excellent work of my Union’s own charity but you may not be familiar with the ground breaking work of Riders for Health (
http://www.riders.org). This unique charity supports health workers in Africa, trains them and equips them with motorcycles like the one I will ride in South Africa which allows them to deliver their crucial medical services to outlying and remote communities.
I will endeavour to keep you posted on further developments as they arise but please feel free to check my blog as I try to keep that as up-to-date as work permits. Hopefully, I will also be able to keep the blog active during the adventure itself providing of course I can get a signal on my PDA.
Again, thank you very much for your support.
