Cycle novice Joe gears up for 2000-mile tandem trip

Published on Tuesday 14 July 2009 09:49

UNTIL two months ago he did not even own a bike, but now Joe Gray is training to tackle the enormous challenge of cycling almost 2,000 miles to Africa – on a tandem.

The Edinburgh University graduate is due to set off later this month on the trip of a lifetime with friend Andrew Voysey.

He is trying to fit in as much training as possible to prepare him for the massive physical challenge of cycling 80 miles per day, six days a week, for four weeks.

The pair will set off from London, travel along the west coast of France, through the Pyrenees and into Spain, and then on to Gibraltar.

From there they will get the ferry across to Morocco, before turning round, going back to Gibraltar and catching a flight back to the UK so they can be home in time to celebrate Mr Voysey's mum's birthday.

The pair, who have been friends since school, came up with the idea after setting themselves a series of previous challenges.

Mr Gray, 23, who lives in the New Town, said: "For the whole time we've been friends we have constantly challenged each other to do various different things.

"It started off with a run at school, then a sponsored swim and then we did the London marathon and this was the next step up.

"Andy cycles to work every day but I haven't ever really cycled any great distance.

"I bought a bike a couple of months ago, though, so I'm trying to practice on that as much as I can.

"When we came up with the idea we thought about what we could do to make it quirky and we came up with the idea of doing a tandem ride.

"The hills make it pretty difficult, it's a lot harder than a normal bike, but on the flat and downhill is much quicker.

"We've had speeds of just under 50mph.

"Everything we do has to be together, if you don't do it in unison you're struggling against each other."

Their trek will raise money for Water Aid, a charity which helps the world's poorest people to gain access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene education, and they hope to raise 10,000.

The pair will cycle carrying all their kit on them including tents, which will be their accommodation throughout the trip, and hope to be as self-sufficient as possible.

Mr Gray, who is sports president at Edinburgh University, said: "I'm really looking forward to the challenge and the scenery, which will be fantastic.

"Wh at I'm not looking forward to is the pain and the hills as I get used to riding a bike."

"The west coast of France will have really fantastic scenery – as long as I'm not on the back the whole time."

Mr Voysey, who is manager of ClimateWise – an insurance initiative for the Cambridge University Programme for Sustainability Leadership – added: "I love challenges. I can't resist them.

"More importantly I am driven by trying to make a difference to those worse off than myself, especially now that the economic downturn is dominating our thinking in this country.

"Access to safe water is a basic human right that one eighth of the world's population does not have.

"Helping those who need it most is reward in itself for the task that Joe and I will face on tandem to Africa."