I'm bound to regret this before too long, but my October "holiday" is going to involve a considerable amount of exercise. I have agreed to support a charity run by a mate of mine. This support will involve flying out to Ethiopia with bike on tow, then cycling for 6 days from Addis Ababa to an outlying town in the middle of nowhere.

There will be between 10 and 20 of us taking part in this trip. The total distance from start to finish is 350km. For those of you like me who still don't understand the metric system, this amounts to approximately 40 miles a day. To make matters more taxing, the cycling will be at an altitude of over 7,000 feet in temperatures of around 25 degrees centigrade, but maybe upwards of 30 degrees.
With that in mind the training has already begun, though round trips from Leeds to Otley and back will need to be expanded upon before the roads of darkest Africa can be negotiated successfully.

The money I raise will be going to save lives in childbirth. Currently 1 in 7 women die in pregnancy or childbirth in Ethiopia. Maternity Worldwide is making a lasting difference by providing trained professionals from the UK, training local doctors and midwives and allowing women to access free care when required through their Safe Birth Fund

I need to raise £2000, part of which will go towards the funding of the trip.
So .... Please dig deep and sponsor me online. Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Maternity Worldwide will receive your money faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you. For further details of this charity, please look up www.maternityworldwide.org Many thanks for your support.