I am fortunate to be able to take a few months off work this summer.  The most obvious thing to do is to find some warm sun, sip nice wine, and catch up with family and friends.  I will be doing this for some of the time … however, I also wanted to set myself a bit of a challenge to raise money for a cause which is very close to my heart.  Fighting the battle against Rhino Poaching.

I have decided to participate in the Haute Route, a cycling event described as the toughest and highest of all cycling events for amateurs.  The original Haute Route was a 7-day race across the French Alps.  However, the organisers added a similar event across both the Pyrenees and the Dolomites.  Each year, about 500 people choose to participate in one of these.  20-25 decide to do all three … back-to-back.  One evening, after too much wine, I decided I would become one of these “Triple Crown” participants.  I have no ambition to race … for me it is just making sure that I finish each stage inside the cut-off time, and repeat this the next day, and the next … 21 times.

Africa and its wildlife are very important to Nikki and me.  Not only is Africa a wonderful continent (and Nikki’s home), but its wildlife is unique, and part of mankind’s heritage.  However, the biggest catastrophe I see is the continued poaching of rhinos to meet the uninformed demand from Asian countries, especially Vietnam.  There are an estimated 20,000 rhinos left alive in Southern Africa, but in South Africa alone over 1,000 were killed last year for their horns, up from just 13 in 2007.  This horn is simply keratin, the same substance found in all our fingernails.  However, in Vietnam it has become a status symbol, purchased by aspiring businessmen to be used as a hangover cure.  Much is already being done to protect these lovely, docile animals in their natural habitats.  However, the battle cannot be won until the demand has been reduced from countries such as Vietnam.  The recent killing of a rhino in a Paris city zoo illustrates the extremes that poachers will go to given the importance (and value) of the horn to end customers … and highlights that just providing protection will not save the rhino from extinction. 

I would like to raise money to support efforts in Vietnam to reduce the demand for rhino horn.  Save the Rhino International has been partnering with local organisations such as TRAFFIC Viet Nam and Education for Nature Vietnam and has created some early successes.  I have arranged for the money that you give to Save the Rhino to be used to provide additional funding to these and other similar organisations that are working to reduce this unnecessary (and irrational) thirst for a beautiful animal’s life.  Nikki and I will personally match every dollar that is donated by you to Save the Rhino.

Thank you