4 days to go

Here I am, now just 4 days away from what I expect to be one my life's great experiences. Well in actual fact this adventure started back on 2nd July when I decided to attend a presentation by Intrepid Travel about cycling challenges in support of Oxfam Australia. The challenge I was interested in involves cycling 400 kms in Yunnan Province, China. I first heard about these challenges three years ago when I friend mentioned it to me but back then I never expected that I would ever be up to a physical challenge such as that.
Three years ago a change of jobs took me from a job which entailed some physical work to a desk job. I quickly realized that if I didn't start doing something physical outside of work I would quickly start putting on weight. So I bought a bicycle and started cycling the 11 kms to work and back 2 to 3 days per week. Last year I surprised myself by completing the 90km MS Society's  Sydney to Wollongong ride and also managed to raise some money for a good cause. The other thing it made me realise was that I could achieve almost anything if I decided to put my mind to it.

Last year also saw my second trip to the country of my parent's birth, China. My first trip was the year before in January 2006 when my father who is now in his 80s decided he wanted to eventually take all four of his children to his birthplace on Hainan Island, which is the southernmost province of China. My sister Debbie and I were the first to go and were also accompanied by Debbie's son, Jet and my wife, Daisy. Last year I accompanied my father on a very special tour which was hosted by the Chinese Government, but that is a story in itself. If you want to know more about that trip, the blog is at http://raylee50.blogspot.com/. This second trip also started giving me a better understanding of China and its people and I developed a new affinity with this amazing country.

In May this year the tragic earthquake in Sichuan Province started me thinking about how I could help but with rising interest rates at the time there wasn't much I could do financially. It was then that I remembered about the Oxfam cycling challenges and knowing about Oxfam's involvement in China and with many other disadvantaged communities around the world, including indigenous Australia,  I started thinking it may a good way to combine my desires to make a contribution to a good cause, return to China again plus provide a way to stay fit.
After signing up in July I then started planning the first challenge which was to raise a minimum of $5,500 to participate in the cycling challenge. My first attempt at fund-rasing was the common chocolate drive but I decided the return was low for the effort and put my thinking cap back on. My main fund-raising events ended up being a series of dinners which we hosted at our home and a one-off rock concert event. I have the fortune of having three talented children and our second son Mitchell is a budding gourmet chef who agreed to assist his "old man" in his fund-raising endeavours by cooking for the dinners. The other event was held recently at The Harp and featured three bands including my own band, Boxer Rebels (note the Chinese reference there). 100 people attended this event and was also a fantastic success, a great time was had by all those attending. This also gave me an excuse to get my band a gig and play some live music and so fulfil another strong desire of mine to play music. It also meant that along with corporate sponsorship from my employer, Express Data and donations from friends who couldn't attend any of the events  I have been able to not only achieve the target but exceed it by over  $2,500.

The second challenge over the last four months has been the training. Being over 50 means that it really is a challenge. It hasn't been without a couple of setbacks, a spill on the way to work in April (before signing up for the challenge) meant 5 months of physiotherapy and together with Achilles tendonitis after attempting some cross training have made regular training hard at times. However I was able to do enough to again participate in the two MS rides, the 50km Sydney Spring Cycle and the Sydney to The Gong ride and I did find them both much easier this year. Whether or not I've done enough remains to be seen, the mountainous terrain and particularly the high altitude conditions are the factors that have been hard to train for. No matter how many hills I've climbed I still find it hard going, but I'm confident that my endurance and recovery powers have improved so I do feel reasonably prepared.