Or in my friend Paul’s case.. ride 4200km!!! across Australia. alone. on a push bike. with no support team. sleeping in a tent. alone. 4200kms. no support team. on a push bike…. ALONE! aaahhhhhhhhh
He is doing it for charity, a very very worthy cause indeed, The Starlight Children’s Foundation. If you wish to help Paul’s cause and support him in his journey from Sydney To Perth he would love it if you could donate whatever small (or large) amount you can spare. He has set himself a target of $10,000.. lets help him reach it! You can also follow Paul on his blog.
He left today at 10am from Bondi Beach, on a rainy miserable cold morning, after a few hiccups of course, his departure time was suppose to be 8am however while putting his seat back on his bike (had to take it off to fit in the car) he snapped something, so we patiently waited for Paul’s brother in law to head to a bike shop for replacements. Goodbyes were said and tears were shed… Then he was gone!
Some of the words that came to mind when Paul told me about the journey he was about to embark on… INSANE. CRAZY. STUPID. DEATH WISH. IDIOT! Do you think I am overreacting? Well read below, its an email his sister sent around her work spreading the word of Paul’s great adventure. She paints a great picture.
“To set the scene a bit, Paul is not a cyclist – in fact he only purchased his bike last week, and while he is fairly fit and healthy, I suspect he would be a more athletic and sporty 24 year old if he had better joints and didn’t constantly dislocate his knees and shoulders (a problem which saw him to undergo knee surgery before his 16th birthday).
As the youngest of four and the only boy in the family, we are naturally concerned for his safety on the trip and hoping he won’t run out of food or water, or dislocate his shoulder in his sleep (this has happened before!) and not be able to get up or get help, but we are nonetheless supportive of his initiative as it is for a great cause.”
Now you can maybe understand my grave concern for this boys life haha, I am sure he will be fine.. as he keeps reassuring me.
Over the past few days I have had the pleasure of hanging out with Paul for a while to document his final moments and his departure from Sydney as he embarks on this journey and makes his way down to his first stop which is Bowral some 126kms away, the longest he has ever cycled on a bike…. EVER!. Standing in the kitchen this morning having breakfast, Paul let out a huge laugh followed by “I’m so not ready for this am I?” all I could do was laugh with him.
I wish him luck from the bottom of my soul and will have my fingers crossed for him. At 8pm tonight I received a text message “Day 1 stats: 126km, 1 broken seat bolt, 1 broken pannier latch, 1 painful bum. Never felt better to arrive anywhere, in a nice house with great hosts & a bath!”
I end this post with a quote from the man himself..
“…for those of you worrying, take comfort in the fact that what I lack in organisation and fitness, I make up for in being awesome :p I’ll be fine.”
Shopping and Packing! (not Paul’s strong points)
The Adventure Begins!
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by Elise
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