First Leg of Bristol2Beijing Expedition Complete!
(Calais, France) 14th February 2020
Today, CanLive founder Luke Grenfell-Shaw and his pink-and-blue tandem bicycle named ‘Chris’ boarded a ferry from Dover, UK closing the first leg of the Bristol2Beijing expedition that crossed England, Scotland, and Wales. The tandem is named for Luke’s late brother, John Christopher Grenfell-Shaw, to whose memory the Bristol2Beijing expedition is dedicated.
Since their departure 45 days ago from their home town of Bristol, Luke and Chris have already had an impactful adventure. The trek has crossed 1,900 kilometres of wintry British landscapes, reaching Wales and Scotland, and with additional pedal power supplied by sixteen stokers on the back of the tandem. Eight of the stokers who joined the UK leg of the expedition are CanLivers. At many points throughout Luke’s UK tour, old and new friends accompanied the expedition by cycling alongside Luke and stoker, totaling many dozens of additional participants in the first leg of the adventure.
The first several weeks during winter in the UK were not anticipated to be exceptionally exotic, but they revealed many treasures. “Cycling around the United Kingdom has been a powerful reminder of the beauty of my home country,” Luke said. “It’s also been an immense privilege to share this experience with close friends and family, renewing old friendships and building new ones with some of the most incredible people, including CanLivers.” As it is for the rest of the expedition, a central aim for the UK tour was to enjoy the journey while also promoting the idea of CanLive.
Touring around the UK, Luke discovered many ways that the CanLive message is already having an impact, most importantly in changing behaviour and the dialogue around living with cancer. “I am overjoyed by the evidence I’ve seen that CanLive is having an impact,” Luke said. “For example, I’ve seen changes in language, such as the uptake of the term ‘CanLiver,’ and changes in behaviour, where people have been enthusiastic to tell me about how they are dusting off their running shoes, getting back on their bicycles, and choosing to live more actively and healthily. One youth cancer centre has even begun instituting weekly opportunities for young CanLivers and staff to get outside for a walk!”
“The past several weeks have also given me the opportunity to see the incredible work the UK’s National Health Service does. I was particularly moved by witnessing the consistently wonderful work that my four partner charities do.” Luke and Chris made several stops to visit CLIC Sargent and Teenage Cancer Trust centres at medical facilities across the country, participated in park runs organised by 5k Your Way--Move Against Cancer, and toured Trekstock’s headquarters where their lean team of seven people and one dog serve the athletic needs of young CanLivers.
During the six-week tour, Luke made twenty-two stops to spread the CanLive message at schools, hospitals, universities, sports clubs, and corporate offices. Together, Luke succeeded in reaching an in-person audience of more than 2,500 individuals. Bristol2Beijing and the CanLive cause have now also been broadcast to countless others across the UK and around the world via radio, television, syndicated lectures, both print and online media, and frequent posts via Bristol2Beijing social media channels on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Weibo.
An early group of nearly 500 donors collectively helped to burst the initial Bristol2Beijing charity fundraising goal of £23,000 only 15 days into the 12+ month expedition. Boarding the ferry in Dover at the end of the UK tour, Luke and Chris were pleased to have raised just over £30,000 for charity, more than 130% of the initial target, thanks to the generosity of more than 600 individual donors. The four UK partner charities have each expressed their deep gratitude for the outpouring of support from these donors and the CanLive community. They have underscored their enthusiasm for the opportunity that continued partnership with Bristol2Beijing will offer for the remainder of the expedition. Fundraising from the first leg of the expedition amounts to a total of more than £7,000 for each of the four charities, including an additional boost from donations by UK taxpayers through Gift Aid, which is making a real difference to what they each can do. “Reaching the fundraising target is even more meaningful when it’s clear that hundreds of people participated,” Luke said, emphasizing that success for Bristol2Beijing is about spreading the CanLive message far and wide, getting people to live their lives as fully as possible.
“This first part of the journey really wouldn’t have been possible without the kindness of so many people,” Luke reflected. “Friends, family, acquaintances, and total strangers welcomed me into their homes, introduced me to their friends and colleagues, and showed me that there is a real appetite for what we are doing. I am so energised by just how much it means to people that we are reframing the way we think about cancer and providing a tangible way of grasping life by the handlebars and living a fuller and richer life. I can only imagine the kind of impact we will have as we continue into Europe and beyond!”