A couple of weeks ago, I made a 'questionable' decision to sign-up for a bike ride from London to Monaco. I will join 30 other riders for 10 days to cover 860 miles and climb 62,000 feet of elevation. These days will be some of the most challenging I've ever had on a bike, and they'll all be back-to-back. It will be tough, especially without having been on a bike for 3 weeks, but I think I can manage.

The ride raises money for the Blue Marine Foundation whose mission is to combat over-fishing and the destruction of biodiversity – arguably the largest problem facing the world’s oceans – by delivering practical conservation solutions, including the creation of large-scale marine reserves. BLUE's aim is to put 10% of the world's oceans under protection by 2020 and 30% by 2030.

Whether you'd like to support the Blue Marine Foundation or you'd just like to give me some extra motivation to make it the whole way without quitting, I'd be very thankful for your support! 

How Will Your Money Help?

$25 will restore 300 native oysters to protected seabed sites in the Solent

$50 will buy a state-of-the-art acoustic pinger – a harmless device, which deters dolphins from stealing fish from artisanal fishermen’s nets, thus reducing conflict and potential harm to bottlenose dolphins in the Aeolians

$100 will will go towards the distribution of reusable cotton bags in Mediterranean countries to provide locals with an alternative to plastic bags

$300 will buy 10 pairs of binoculars for conservation staff, also to be used during children’s field trips on Ascension

$500 will pay for a skilled underwater cameraman + equipment (per day) to document the underwater world of the Aeolians for Virtual Reality platforms

$1,000 will install and monitor a set of cages filled with native oysters under marina pontoons in the Solent where they will spawn wild areas and inform best practice approaches to oyster restoration

$5,000 will pay for clean-up campaigns, the installation of plastic collection tools, and training for fishermen and young people to ensure the sustainability of the initiative in Tunisia, Montenegro and Albania

$10,000 could pay for 40 small acoustic tags for juvenile sharks to identify size of protected nursery area in Ascension.