One night last year - in a bar! - I agreed to ride the Etape du Tour.  It's 140km long with 4900 vertical metres of climbing.  I'll share it with several thousand other mad people on July 8th, and a hundred or so professionals will ride it (slightly more quickly) in the Tour four days later - see here for the dreadful details: http://www.letour.fr/2012/TDF/COURSE/us/1100/etape_par_etape.html.

I'm riding in memory of my good friend Steve Ford who died last year of a brain tumour aged just 49, and for his family.  He would have done this ride if he could.

The Tribal Foundation supports sustainable projects which help people to become self-sufficient.  It's money very well spent and your donation can be multiplied though Tribal's matching and government funding up to 12-fold.

So please dig deep - as I will be - and donate now.  Thank you.