Hi, thanks for checking out my page.

My name's Ed - I'm cycling from New York City to Los Angeles for UNICEF, starting in May 2022, because why not? (Don't worry, I've considered all the why nots). 

Spanning approximately 4,000 miles, the route I've chosen will take me through some iconic places and epic scenery, and I'll be posting Strava updates and plenty of pictures here and on Instagram, so please do follow along! 

This is not a time trial - more of a personal challenge - but I'm hoping the ride will take about 60 days. I'd be chuffed if I managed quicker, but I'm keeping an open mind about the prospect of possible delays. However long it takes, it goes without saying that I feel incredibly lucky to be able to tick off this particular bucket list item. 

I'm well aware, though, that for probably most people in the world, such an adventure would not be possible, especially now, with the world seemingly going through a period of inflation and increased risk for families and children. I can't include hyperlinks here, so look up this BBC News article for an example of what I mean by this: Ukraine war: World Bank warns of 'human catastrophe' food crisis. 

Over the years in my professional life, I've had the privilege to work on behalf of numerous NGOs and charities, so I'm pretty attuned to the issues that organisations like UNICEF help to tackle, and the ways in which they do that. I can't list every humanitarian crisis that has angered me to learn about here, but there are many. 

The most obvious of recent months is the Ukraine war, which, taking place as it is on the European continent, is particularly shocking to me as a British citizen - the closer to home these things occur, the more viscerally you tend to feel them. But there are many less well-reported crises, such as the refugee camps of Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh - where nearly a million displaced Rohingya people have lived for several years - which also need continuous support from organisations like UNICEF, and are of equal humanitarian importance.

Indeed, although the particular circumstances of these crises may be quite different, there is a common fact about them that makes them alike: in all, there are large numbers of innocent child victims who are in very real need of care, safety, nutrition and education. This is why I decided to raise money for UNICEF - a UN organisation that does not discriminate along political, ideological or cultural lines. Its only purpose is to help children and families wherever they are in need, and it has the resources and clout to make a big impact in situations where only a large scale operation will suffice.

100% of funds raised will go directly to Unicef UK, which functions as a fundraising organisation for global operations rather than committing resources in the UK. My own expenses for the trip are all covered by myself. 

Thank you so much for your donation and for reading.

Ed