On the 31/03/10, British professional racing cyclist Alan Bate will begin a dramatic attempt to sensationally lower the Round the World Cycling Record to just 99 days. This punishing schedule has been widely ridiculed as “impossible”. Mark Beaumont set a fantastic Guinness record of 195 days for the 18,000 miles. This record was broken twice last year and now stands at 165 days (to be ratified by Guinness) His birth date is 01/04/65. So, at 45 years of age on the first of April, he is twice that of the current record holder. "It’s been said I am just an April fool…..well let’s see!" Alan’s approach on the bike though is 100% serious. He is based out in Thailand and has been preparing at altitude in the mountains of the north for three years. The start point for the challenge is Bangkok, Thailand. See Alan’s website for more details
Dermot Macward, owner of London based Red Spokes Cycling Adventure Holidayswww.redspokes.co.uk met Alan whilst on tour in Laos. The pair hit it off immediately in Alan’s cycle-themed bar, and a late night with a quaff or two of the local brew turned into a serious discussion, where both men discovered their many common interests. Dermot and his Red Spokes staff support a number of causes, such as “Braille without Borders” in Tibet; the Laos village community fund, and projects in Peru. Alan is an ambassador for Right To Play and is an avid supporter of Save the Children. Right To Play use sports play to develop disadvantaged children and Alan works in the Burmese refugee camps in Thailand. Save the Children are concentrating on highlighting the child mortality rate in Bangladesh and Alan wishes to highlight this serious issue.
Now Dermot through Red Spokes, has become a sponsor for Alan’s record attempt. Both men plan to join forces once the record attempt is over. Their aim is to expand the charitable efforts they make as a team effort, both on the ground and in the media. The record attempt is set to land in the UK via Portsmouth on the 30/06/10. Alan will ride into London and straight through to Dover in just one day. There will be opportunities to ride with Alan on the UK leg of his challenge. (Contact Red Spokes for more details).
“Having the support for the British leg from Dermot is amazing. As a fellow cyclist, he fully understands the daunting task ahead of me. He shares my passion and love of cycling, along with our joint empathy for the less fortunate on this earth. I will do all I can to make the project a big success and hope to smash the record.”
For further information and images please contact Red Spokes at office@redspokes.co.uk or on +44(0)207 502 7252.