Matthew Clixby
Coast to Coast on a Dragon Pedalo
Fundraising for Newborns Vietnam
Story
So I had an idea with my good friend Mike Hall a good while ago in a pub after several ales to buy a pedalo and pedal it somewhere inappropriate. I always thought that it would happen at some point and felt like it was the kind of ridiculous thing Mike would have enjoyed... Recently myself and my friend Sam had another discussion in a pub after several ales about the same idea.... It lead to an online hunt for a vessel, resulting in the purchase of a second hand dragon boat pedalo moored at Warwick castle. Its a 4 birth cabin, with pedals in the front 2 seats. There is room for luggage and there is talk of carrying out modifications to make the seats more comfortable, introduce a mechanism for blowing flames out of the snout and the means of stringing a tarp overhead to keep off the rain.
For those who do not know Mike, he was a legend in the world of endurance cycling and held records in many of the worlds hardest races. He inspired thousands to ride and push themselves to see what they could achieve. He died suddenly in a collision with a car whilst competing in the Indian Pacific Wheel race in Australia in March 2017.
https://www.outsideonline.com/2173576/mike-hall-man-who-inspired-world-cyclists
Mike could be quite serious, especially when competing, but he liked to be ridiculous too when he could. His passion for adventure and self development certainly wore off on me over the years and I feel that after he was taken away from us all too soon and so unexpectedly, that I should continue the adventurous spirit that Mike helped develop within me. Therefore myself and a number of Mikes friends will be doing something a bit silly, something a bit adventurous and something a bit more Mike.... The plan is to pedal a huge, cumbersome plastic dragon shaped pedalo from Fort William on the West coast of Scotland to Inverness on the East coast, via the Caledonian canal.. There are 29 locks, 5 Lochs and its 60 miles in length... The route passes through Loch Ness, the home of the famous monster. There may be a surge in sightings this September.
As space on the boat is limited we may also be taking some canoes / kayaks alongside and we plan to swap vessels and get the dragon to the finish line between us all.
We plan to do this as a tribute to what Mikes friendship meant to us, but also to raise some money for a charity that he did much to support in the past.
There may be room for others too on the trip. If you get in touch I will let you now how we are getting on! You will need an adventurous spirit, a good sense of humour, a buoyancy aid and to not mind getting wet.
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