Hello, my name is Elizabeth Ann Brierton. I am 33 years old. I have been living in Vietnam for almost two years now, and am originally from California, USA. In April I am one of 20 riders that will cycle from the North of Vietnam, Hanoi, down to the South of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City. The ride will take us 28 days and we will raise money for 5 different charities in Vietnam: Saigon’s Children, Blue Dragon, KOTO, Live and Give, and The ILA Community.
    These charities help with schooling, crisis situations, life training, scholarships and much more. Saigon’s Children charity builds schools in rural areas and improves existing schools. The Blue Dragon helps children and families in crises situations. They help children escape human trafficking and reunites run-a-ways with their families. They have had a positive impact on 50,000 children and their families. They make sure even the poorest children in Vietnam get an education. Education in Vietnam is not free. Live and Give have built a boarding school for disadvantage children that is ran by Vietnamese nuns of the Saint Paul church, and are planning the construction of another school. KOTO offers disadvantaged youth a chance at job training in the hospitality industry, and the ILA offers scholarships to Universities and English Language Centers. The charities give the poorest and the most disadvantaged youth of the country a fighting chance at a better life, through independence and sustainability. They give the children the tools to escape poverty.
    I want to change the world. I don’t think I have to do any great extreme task to do this. I have to be a good person and make an effort everyday to help in someway. Doing something small everyday can have a great impact. As Gandhi said, "be the change you want to see in the world.” I found out about the H2H ride through one of my friends. Her boyfriend has done the ride twice. It sounded like an amazing way to help the country where I have been living the last two years, and a great way to see the communities I will be helping.
    The H2H ride has been an annual event for the last 8 years. In the last 8 years they have managed to raise over $238,000 USD. This year’s team goal is $40,000. My goal is $1,000. All riders will cover their own expenses through out the trip. All of your donation goes to the charities. We will have corporate sponsors and individuals. Any corporation that donates over $500 USD will have their name on our jersey. We are holding fund raising events and and some sponsors are sponsoring with alluring prizes like a free manicure, or a free spa treatment. We are hoping a travel agency will sponsor with a free trip to Cat Ba or Sapa that we can raffle off. DHL is a corporate sponsor that donates a van to follow us in case someone is injured and can not ride. Some riders are selling hoodies and t-shirts to fund-raise, while others use word of mouth and social media. 100% sales (after the cost of goods), and monetary donations, event entry fees, and raffle ticket sales go directly to the charity.
    The ride will take us 28 days and we will cycle an average of 80km a day. Some days we cycle 47km and some days we cycle 117km. The largest climb is 1300ft. The average climb is 500ft. The humidity will be high and will increase the further south we travel. We will have first aid training before the event, provided by one of our corporate sponsors, Family Medical Practice, and will be led and followed by a van with our luggage one van is donated by DHL and the other van the riders split the cost, a mechanic and spare parts for our bikes donated by Giant and The Hanoi Bicycle Collective. This is my first multi day cycling trip. I am pre-training in December and will train for three months, January to April. April 1, 2018 we begin our journey south. We are using the route that has been used in previous H2H rides. The route will take us inland to by-pass all the trucks. This route is safer for us to travel, but comes at a cost. This route will have us cross mountains. We will climb and climb some more. We will descend for a day. We will cycle some more, passed Villages and rice fields. We will see the country like never before. For me, it is my first trip this South. The experience will be like none other, and the difference we can make will change the world.
    I ask you today to take the time and make a small or large donation. Every little bit helps and even $5 is not small in Vietnam. Thank you all in advanced for supporting this ride in away you see fit. If you can’t support it with a donation, then please support the trip by sharing this with as many people as you can. If we all do something small, we can all change the world together.