The countdown begins – and the nerves have arrived!
It’s now less than 6 weeks until we begin our cycle from London to Cape Town, and it’s a good time to start our blog.
I’m not sure where the time has gone. I remember it being February and packing up our things to take to the London Bike Show and thinking – “hurry up, July, I want to leave!” And now, as I sit here, panic is beginning to set in slightly as the reality of what we are attempting is dawning on me.
There is still so much for us to do. The last few weeks have been completely rammed. We are both still working full time and have busy work schedules, so we have to fit everything into our evenings and weekends. But, slowly, we are getting there. From wilderness first aid courses, practice bike rides, route planning, kit checks, planning our fundraising schedule, and organising our London to Brighton cycle ride, it has been a busy few months.
We are so excited about the expedition and hope many of you will follow our journey along the way. We are lucky enough to be using the same GPS tracker that Mark Beaumont used on his recent epic World Record-breaking Cairo to Cape Town cycle – supplied by Trident Sensors. Once we set off, our location will be updated daily on a link via the route section of our website. But, do not be fooled; we will not be travelling at Mark’s speed or daily distances, so you will need a little more patience to track us.
We plan to share our journey as often as we can – so you can experience the journey with us. We’ll also be blogging each month on Total Women’s Cycling where you’ll not just be able to read about the trip but also find out about the kit and equipment that our generous kit sponsors have provided us.
A huge thank you to everyone who has helped us get to where we are today – a particular mention must go to Chris Davison at Vaude, who has pretty much kitted us from head to toe in the best cycling and camping equipment for cycle touring. Also, to our family, friends, and colleagues who have all helped us get to the start in some way or another. You’ll hear more about them along the way.
Thanks also to Sea to Summit, Victorinox, CamelBak, Click Stand, Goal Zero, DFDS Seaways, Involution, and Thrive. They have all supplied us with valuable equipment and services, which we’ll blog about in due course.
In the meantime, please Like our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and, if you haven’t already, sign up for our London to Brighton Charity bike ride on July 12th.
Emily