With China’s borders closed, Bristol2Beijing expedition enters final stage, cycling 3,300km in London
(London, UK) On 16 April, Luke Grenfell-Shaw and his pink-and-blue tandem bicycle named “Chris” arrived in the far northeast corner of India. With China still completely closed to foreigners, Luke was unable to make further progress in his expedition to Beijing. Forever determined to make the best of any situation, Luke and Chris have returned to London to cycle the remaining 3,300 kilometres on a stationary turbo in prominent locations around central London. Luke will conclude the ride in Bristol, completing his journey where he began.
Incredibly, despite cycling during a global pandemic, Luke managed to keep moving east, travelling through 29 countries in total. The Chinese border was the first he has been unable to cross. “Being unable to reach Beijing is deeply disappointing. It has been my dream for the last three years. But I am so proud of everything we have achieved despite the pandemic. I will keep living life to the full – despite cancer, covid, and closed borders!” Read more about Luke’s reflections on the end of the road on the Bristol2Beijing blog.
Luke and Chris have traversed virtually every kind of landscape and weather – braving -15°C and +50°C, mountain passes and treacherous roads – and pedalled a cumulative total of 26,700 km to this point with more than 300 people having provided pedal power on the stoker seat, 20 of whom are CanLivers. A mere 3,300 kilometres remain on the road to Beijing, which Luke is determined to cycle anyway.
Luke has chosen central London as the venue for this final stage (some locations are set, others still TBC) to maximise engagement and visibility of his inspirational message: we can live with cancer, and do so richly and fully if we proactively create opportunities to make the most of today and improve our chances of living well tomorrow. The four weeks of cycling also offer the best possible opportunity to reach Bristol2Beijing’s fundraising target of £300,000 for cancer-related charities. This final leg of the expedition will support the four expedition partner charities – 5kYour Way, Young Lives vs. Cancer, Trekstock, and Teenage Cancer Trust.
“I am super excited for the final 3,300 km I’ll be cycling in central London,” Luke said. “It’s the perfect way to involve as many people as possible and to spread the message of living your dreams, no matter your relationship with cancer. I’m really looking forward to involving all of the UK in my ride and to raising as much money as possible for our wonderful charities. This is an amazing way to finish the ride!”
London Events Schedule
Kicking off on Thursday, 19th of May, Luke will be pedalling the tandem on a stationary turbo from various locations around central London. Over the course of the month, Luke will be cycling the remaining 3,300 km that he had planned to cycle from the Chinese border to Beijing. The expedition will conclude in Bristol on Sunday, 19th of June on the 4 year anniversary of Luke’s cancer diagnosis.
Dates, locations, times, and special events will be posted as they are confirmed at https://www.bristol2beijing.org/london and also promoted on social media. Those eager to support Luke in these final weeks by volunteering or pedalling on the tandem are eagerly invited to contact bristol2beijing@gmail.com.
Leg 5 in Review
Leg 5 began in November, 2021 in Islamabad, Pakistan. Six months, three international borders, three charity partnerships, and 10,014 kilometres later, Luke arrived in the northeastern corner of India with many new friends and experiences. Luke discovered and was frequently reminded of the many systemic challenges that people living with cancer face in this region, and gained a deep appreciation for the work of his regional charity partners. Time and again, he was humbled by the generosity of Bristol2Beijing supporters and many local benefactors to ensure their deeply impactful work continues.
103 new stokers joined Luke on the tandem during Leg 5 – the most of any leg thus far! To name just a few: his mum, Jenny; Tom Lowe (both Jenny and Tom are key members of the Bristol2Beijing Team); Dev Mukherjee, a 17-year-old CanLiver and youth member of Luke’s regional partner charity, CanKids KidsCan (read more about Dev); an extremely positive and fit group of cyclists from Cycle Logic India (meet Sunny, Gautam, and Nikesh); Kaye Pollard, a British expat living in Bangladesh (read one of Kaye’s three blogs about riding with Luke); and the British Deputy High Commissioner to India, who kindly hosted Luke for a period of rest from the road.
In Pakistan, after having descended to Islamabad from the Afghan border in October, Luke arrived in Pakistan to kick off Leg 5 in Islamabad. While the portion of this leg was only about 300 kilometres over three short weeks, Luke was thrilled to be partnered with Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre in Lahore, Pakistan. Luke enjoyed an inspiring visit to the hospital on 22 November (read more) which helped to raise funds for their important work. Another highlight was delivering a talk at the Aga Khan University, Pakistan’s largest medical college. Luke was sorry to leave the amazing people, food, and landscapes of Pakistan behind when he crossed into India on 6 December, though he enjoyed positive press coverage for Bristol2Beijing while in the country (see example from Arab News).
In India, Luke enjoyed crossing thousands of kilometres of this vast and diverse country, visiting historic and holy buildings and rivers and tasting spectacular food. Luke is proud to have been the first traveller to have crossed the Wagah border from Pakistan into India after 18 long and isolating pandemic months. Once in country, Luke had wonderful support from regional partner charity CanKids KidsCan, and is proud to have supported the organisation’s local fundraising efforts. Among months of memories in India, Luke especially enjoyed cycling alongside Santa Claus and his cheery motorcycle in Delhi on Christmas Day, unexpectedly playing rugby in a small village, and resting from the road on the golden beaches of Goa. Read Luke’s reflections on India and his detailed descriptions of what it’s like to cycle in India (see blog for parts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5).
In Bangladesh, Luke was relieved to find fairly minimal elevation change and energised by the near constant attention he and his pink-and-blue tandem and matching outfits attracted, whether stopping for tea or fixing a flat. Luke’s first joiner, Tanvir, served as his guide, orienting Luke to the landscapes, culture, and food of Bangladesh. Partnered with World Child Cancer, Luke was invited to speak at Dhaka Medical College and tour the facility – a jarring but important reminder of how lucky developed nations are to have such resources for medical support and the contrasting experience in places like Bangladesh (read about Luke’s visit). In the lowlands of the Brahmaputra River, Luke enjoyed the amazing beauty of the lowland rice paddies and a tasty cinnamon roll, too! Luke’s final few weeks in the region crossed the Assam region of India, including its mountains and floods and some great coverage from local YouTubers! The constant smiling of everyone Luke met will remain long in his memory.
END
Contact:
You can find videos, images and further information about the movement and the expedition at https://bristol2beijing.org/
For questions and media requests, please contact Storm Communications at (+44) 0207 240 2444 or via email at bristol2beijing@stormcom.co.uk.
Social media:
Instagram: @bristol2beijing
Twitter: @Bristol2B
Facebook: Bristol2B
Weibo: @Bristol2Beijing
ABOUT BRISTOL2BEIJING
Bristol2Beijing is a global tandem cycling expedition aiming to redefine what is possible with a cancer diagnosis. The expedition, which invites people to participate, especially CanLivers (people living with cancer) and individuals from the countries through which Luke is riding, is supporting four UK-based charities throughout the journey (Young LIves vs. Cancer, Teenage Cancer Trust, Trekstock, and 5k Your Way--Move Against Cancer) and one regional partner charity for each leg of the journey outside the UK. By cycling across the world and including other CanLivers in the adventure, Bristol2Beijing is the central expression of the CanLive movement, founded by Luke Grenfell-Shaw in 2019 at the age of 25. CanLive is the belief that, even with the uncertainties that a cancer diagnosis brings, we can live with cancer, and do so richly and fully if we proactively create opportunities to make the most of today and improve our chances of living well tomorrow. Luke and his tandem, named Chris in memory of his late brother John Christopher Grenfell-Shaw, are putting CanLive into action by exploring the world, uncovering stories of positivity, resilience, and triumph in the face of adversity, and inviting the world to participate in the journey through the Bristol2Beijing expedition. With China currently closed to foreigners, Luke will complete the final 3,300km of the expedition on a stationary bicycle in central London, inviting all to join on the tandem or cheer him on (19 May - 19 June).
For more information visit: bristol2beijing.org