Story
As some of you may already be aware on Sunday 7 August I will be competing in the London Triathlon. It has taken me two years to build up the courage to take on this challenge again after last doing it in 2014, believing I was naturally quite fit and then finding out the hard way that was not the case, hobbling around in agony for about a week...
One of the main drivers for me taking on the challenge again (other than my poor physical fitness), was the amount of funding I was able to raise for my chosen charity...The Road Safety Fund.
For those of you that don't know, my parents live in Cambodia. The living conditions in some areas are really poor and the country suffers from terrible seasonal flooding, but one thing that particularly stuck out for me were the roads...both the state of them and the driving on them! This was highlighted when our driver from the airport elected to drive on the wrong side of the road in order to slow (not halt!) oncoming traffic to allow him to manoeuvre into the housing estate...particularly crazy when the oncoming traffic is children or even full families of four on a motorcycle!
I since learnt that Cambodia has the highest motorcycle fatality rate in SE Asia and there have been various initiatives in educating children on the benefits of wearing a helmet. The Road Safety Fund is the charity behind these initiatives and they were extremely grateful for the money we raised previously for their projects in Cambodia. I attach below a report they produced on how the funds of £890/$1,567 were spent: Highlights include:
Pictures of the helmet handover ceremony (at which students gave speeches)
Summary of media coverage (2 tv segments and 10 online articles)
Quotes from the teachers
The number of people that benefitted (291 students, 18 teachers and 50 school mums)
The money really does go a long way!
I'd be really grateful if you were able to provide any sponsorship to my page 'Tri-ing for Charity'.