(Bukhara, Uzbekistan) 10th June 2021

Today, CanLive founder Luke Grenfell-Shaw and his pink-and-blue tandem bicycle named Chris announce the start of Leg 4 of the Bristol2Beijing expedition. The milestone comes after cycling 5,627 kilometres from Chișinău, Moldova to Bukhara, Uzbekistan. Supporters can follow Luke and Chris via GPS.

Like the first two legs of the expedition, the third came with its twists and turns. Departing from the capital city of Moldova in November 2020, Luke shortly crossed the border into Ukraine and began a long, wintry grind against unforgiving easterly headwinds. But the eastern Ukraine city of Mariupol received him with a very warm welcome, making “The Road to Mariupol” well worth the trip (see new 13-minute movie from Rumsey Films). Leg 3 of the expedition included crossing seven countries (Moldova, Ukraine, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan) and two seas (the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea). The trek across Eastern Europe, the Caucuses, and the beginning of Central Asia was complicated by COVID-19-related border closures. Thanks to very kindhearted and connected people he met along the way, Luke was allegedly the first non-commercial traveler to cross certain borders in almost a year. Prioritising health and safety, Luke and Chris carried on and even included 61 joiners on the tandem, participating in the thrill of living life to the full while making vivid, cross-cultural connections. The grand total for the expedition is now 12,727 kilometres cycled and 105 joiners across 24 countries!

Leg 3 Partner Charity Successes

Charity fundraising has been one of the many success stories of Leg 3 of the expedition, more than doubling funds raised in the first two legs for a current grand total of £94,000 raised from 1,699 individual donors (an additional 829 during Leg 3 alone). A recent exercise challenge and fundraising program organised by expedition sponsor and partner Newton raised more than £7,000 in a single week. Luke and the Bristol2Beijing team are proud of the collaboration with charity partners, for each of which more than £9,400 has been raised since the start of Leg 3 on 17 November 2020. During this leg of the expedition, these partners included expedition partners Young Lives vs. Cancer, Teenage Cancer Trust, Trekstock, 5k Your Way--Move Against Cancer, and regional partner ChildAid to Eastern Europe.

ChildAid to Eastern Europe works with local partners in Belarus, Moldova, Siberia and Ukraine to create life changing hope and opportunities for children living with disabilities, orphans, those living in vulnerable families and those living with the consequences of conflict. Specifically, contributions to Bristol2Beijing during Leg 3 of the expedition supported two of their projects, the Tony Hawks Centre in Moldova and the Little Lighthouse project in Makariv, west of Kiev, Ukraine. Both are free-to-access centres for vulnerable and disadvantaged children and their parents. Luke was thrilled to be invited to visit both of the facilities this past winter.

Martin Wilcox, the Director of ChildAid to Eastern Europe notes that “what Luke has achieved is nothing short of incredible. We are proud and honoured to have been a very small part of his achievements and cannot express our thanks enough for being a bright shining light of hope and enthusiasm in a region which for so many and for so long has been so dark. Thank you Luke, and may God bless you and keep you safe as you continue onto Beijing.”

ChildAid to Eastern Europe recently informed Luke that he touched many lives when he visited their centres. (See recent blog from Luke recounting his visits to the Tony Hawks Centre in Chișinău, Moldova and the Little Lighthouse centre in Makariv, Ukraine).

After a few weeks in Baku, Azerbaijan sorting visas for the next part of the journey, Luke recently crossed the Caspian Sea and spent just over three weeks on the road to Bukhara. “Since crossing the Caspian Sea, it’s been hot and roads have been bumpy. A consistent theme, as true in Uzbekistan as it has been anywhere else, continues to be the warm welcome of people I meet along the way and their enthusiasm for what I’m doing -- for what we are doing.” The Bristol2Beijing community has generously raised more than £19,000 for each of the four expedition partner charities that have been with Luke since the beginning.

New Regional Partner Charity for Leg 4

From Bukhara to Islamabad, Bristol2Beijing is thrilled to be partnered with another wonderful charity, The BEARR Trust. BEARR has been working for 30 years to improve the health and social welfare of vulnerable groups in countries of the former Soviet Union. Their work with local partners spans across Eastern Europe and Central Asia, including several of the countries that Luke has already cycled through. 

One fifth of funds raised during Leg 4 of the expedition will be dedicated to The BEARR Trust. Specifically, this portion of funds will support BEARR’s Small Grants Scheme, which gives small, community-based voluntary and charitable organisations a chance to try out new approaches to health issues, and to share the results with others. BEARR’s partners in Central Asia have recently run projects to prevent violence against women and girls, and to improve the position of women in rural communities. For example, last year BEARR supported NGO PO MIR – Office for Initiatives Development with its project providing media literacy and entrepreneurial skills workshops to women in rural Tajikistan as a means of increasing financial independence and preventing domestic violence. BEARR is delighted to be supporting PO MIR with another project this year, as part of its 2021 grants scheme supporting projects to reduce the social isolation of vulnerable people – a problem made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The BEARR Trust chairman, Nicola Ramsden, said, “We’ve been following Luke’s progress, and we were delighted that he and his tandem companions have already been able to visit two projects we supported in Moldova and one in Azerbaijan. We’re honoured to be chosen as Luke’s partner for his journey through Central Asia, and we look forward to introducing him to some of the wonderful people we’ve been working with. We believe in the power of grass-roots organisations to help vulnerable people most effectively, and to change attitudes to them – it will mean a lot to them to meet Luke, and I’m sure that they will be inspired by what he is doing.”

The Road Ahead

Leg 4 of the expedition promises to present many new challenges, navigating borders, geopolitics, and summer heat. Luke welcomes the challenges these next several thousand kilometres will bring because, he says, “being able to travel at all is a huge privilege. No matter the conditions I’m intensely aware of how lucky I am to be cycling my bike.” Ahead lie countless opportunities to see the world, its diverse people, cultures, landscapes, and architecture. As always, Luke will continue to share stories from his adventure with his growing community of Bristol2Beijing supporters. Luke’s Bristol2Beijing podcast has now completed three seasons with more than forty episodes that invite listeners into the joys, struggles, and insights from his ride, including interviews with wonderful people along the way.

“I don’t really think in terms of marking off legs and rushing to Beijing,” Luke said. “But looking back it’s been incredible to have travelled so far and met so many people. I take greatest satisfaction in the knowledge that this ride is reshaping what people see is possible with cancer, and sharing the journey with other people. I can’t wait to see what this next leg will bring!”