A TEENAGER from Leamington is following a well trodden path – but on two wheels.
Will Hsu, together with friend Charles Stevens from London, have just set off an epic 10,000km bike ride from Beijing in China to Tehran in Iran along the ancient trade route between east and west known as the ‘Silk Road’.
The pair are aiming to raise to raise £25,000 for A Child Unheard which works to improve the lives of children in Africa through education, sports and arts.
The challenge is expected to take them 120 days, traveling through nine countries climbing to over 4,000 meters as well as descending below sea level.
And along the journey temperatures will range from minus ten-degrees Celsius to above 45-degrees.
Both 18 year-olds have taken a gap year before heading to university in September and wanted to do something worth while with their time.
Will, who will be studying economics at Bath University said: “I’m looking at this excursion as a method of ridding myself of life’s excesses as I cycle from Beijing to Tehran along the historic Silk Road.
“While to some this may seem like a not-so-good idea, I am looking forward to experiencing new and unfamiliar countries and cultures, while also achieving worthwhile satisfaction through the funds raised for charity.”
The Silk Road gets its name from the lucrative Chinese silk trade which created a network of trade routes from Asia to Europe.
Fewer people have cycled the Silk Road – infamous because it is considered to be the longest, hardest, hottest and coldest route in the world – than have climbed Mount Everest.
Visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/BeijingtoTehran to sponsor Will and Charles.
