Cycling the World's Highest Road
In September this year myself & my good friend Jack are going to be cycling 550km through the Indian Himalayas at extremely high altitudes, in order to raise money for the charity Children Walking Tall, whom we recently volunteered for. The ride is scheduled to take us 11 gruelling days over 6 major passes, 3 of which are over a whopping 5000m & including the world's highest motorable road at a height of 5602m. The route will take us from the beautiful Himalayan town of Manali in Himachal Pradesh to the Khardung La Pass, around 40km north of Leh in Ladakh.
Children Walking Tall is a charity aimed at helping some of the poorest children in India have a childhood worth remembering. They help provide education, healthcare, food & clothing to local slum children from their base in Goa.
I have recently returned from a 10 month stint volunteering there and I was so taken by the kindness shown by the children that I wanted to do even more to help give something back. As a result I have decided to push my body to the limit by attempting to cycle 550km through high altitude passes in the Indian Himalayas.
Having recently trekked up to similar altitudes whilst attempting Everest Base Camp in Nepal, there is no underestimating how hard this cycle is going to be in such thin air, especially given that I'm not an experienced cyclist at all. However, after seeing the determination shown by these children in India, in spite of the fact that life has dealt them a shit hand, I feel inspired to physically go beyond any means I've previously been in order to raise some money to help them have a brighter future.
The plan for any money raised is to open up saving accounts for the children individually, so that they have an incentive to finish school (one of the t&c's of the account is the money will be available to them on completion of their education) as well providing them with a springboard out of the poverty they were born into.
Children Walking Tall is one of the best run charities out there & the children are absolutely amazing, despite having very little. Please, please dig deep & help me make this challenge worthwhile by backing me with your hard-earned cash and offering a greater opportunity to some of the world's poorest children. Any amount you can spare will be greatly received as even a few pounds go an awful long way in country like India.
Many thanks for your kindness & support,
Steve
|
