Sunday, December 28, 2014

Support Vehicle!!

Tadaah, here she is:



This is the vehicle and caravan grateful provided by Eric and Marilyn for us to use on the entire adventure! The bicycle riders can comfortably sleep in this van and we can cook inside it if we need to. Ample space too!

For the hike/Bibbulmun part in WA we may need to find volunteers to drive the support vehicle up from one access point to the next... If you think you can help and live in that direction.... do get in touch: support@coughing4cf.com !

Welcoming Leonie to the ride!



Leonie is joining us for the ride across the Nullarbor! She thought about it for a while and figured she couldn't do it, but now she has come round and so far committed to coming from Devonport to Adelaide! Welcome aboard :)

To date the full-time team of cyclists (who will take turns driving the support vehicle when they fall over) consists of all Tasmanian Hash House Harriers: TripleTop (Jo) and Swordy (Marilyn) and GoneAgain (me). Then we have Thrust (Cindy) and  Eweturn (Leonie) going from Devonport to Adelaide and Karina from Adelaide to Albany. We still need one rider to join us for the entire way.

We are still looking for a major sponsor to help us pay for Team Expenses, ranging from the Spirit of Tasmania to get the support vehicle shipped from Devonport to Melbourne and back and to help pay for some other team expenses. In return we will provide some national press coverage, and will carry the sponsor's message across Australia. The sponsors will also be featuring on a book and the blog of course :)

Monday, December 15, 2014

Cyclists so far!

Plans are shaping up nicely!
We have the following riders:

Jo (pictured on the left below), Hash House Harrier from Devonport Hash will be coming along for the entire bicycle ride, and fellow Devonport Hasher Cindy (right) for some of the ride. Cindy has joined me on various other Cystic Fibrosis Fundraisers (Vietnam to Singapore, Paris to Istanbul, Sydney to Melbourne, Mount Kinabalu,...)


Marilyn (pictured below), Hash House Harrier from Burnie Hash was the first person to commit to the entire adventure, both ride and hike. Marilyn is hoping to bring her main-man along for some sections but has volunteered their vehicle and caravan to be our support vehicle!


Karina from Adelaide (pictured below standing next to me) is a veteran adventurer herself, having joined me on  the El Camino in Spain, and cycled with us from Vietnam to Singapore. She is not 100% committed yet, but we are all confident she will come.


If you are interested in coming along and help ride and drive with us, or interested in helping out or walking along the Bibbulmun Track in Western Australia email: info@coughing4cf.com. We plan to start the ride 8 March 2015 and arrive around Easter in Albany, WA.  The hike along the Bibbulmun Track will start after a few good rest days in Albany, and will go from mid April to early June 2015. 

www.proelectricbikes.com.au has kindly come on board again to supply us with the popular Aseako Electric Bicycles. Proelectricbikes have sponsored me in the past with Zoco Rossa Electric Bikes for the 5000km+ ride from Hanoi to Singapore in the past. We have great faith in these bicycles and hope to make the distance across the Nullarbor to spread inspiration and awareness about Cystic Fibrosis and the importance of becoming an Organ Donor.


WE ARE URGENTLY LOOKING FOR A FEATURE SPONSOR WHO WOULD LIKE TO HELP US WITH TEAM EXPENSES ALONG THE WAY!

Contact support@coughing4cf.com if you think you can help!

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Friends of the Bibbulmun Track


Excellent start to a new adventure! Ree and I became an official Bibbulmun Family!
Events are posted on Facebook, if you like to keep posted with the organisation of either the Ride or the Hike click JOIN: https://www.facebook.com/Coughing4Cf/events.

Also, negotiations with possible sponsors are taking shape for the Ride and Hike for Cystic Fibrosis. Dates and itineraries are set (in mud).

Hardest for me will be leaving Lily behind and find a place for her for a couple of months while Ree comes over to Western Australia.

Hiking the Bibbulmun and Riding the Nullarbor Dates!

The Bibbulmun track will be the biggest challenge. I will need to carry my own supplies and somehow keep my medicine cool... Fortunately it is a beautiful hike and there may be a few people joining me here and there. Most people seem to hike from North to South, I am doing it the other way as I like to go from Devonport to Perth, and given we want the last of the summer tailwinds on the Nullarbor and avoid the heat of summer in WA.

To understand how beautiful it is have a look at these links:

Couple from PNG: http://www.mitupela.net/gnw/bibbulmun.html
Kim's Walk: http://www.kimswalk.com/events/2013-07
Yetizone Guidebook: http://www.yetizone.com/australia/Bibbulmun/Track/Bibbulmun-Track.shtml
The official page: https://www.bibbulmuntrack.org.au

Here is the proposed schedule to date, cycling till just past Easter. If the wind blows maybe we'll get to Albany by Easter :) Then the hike along the Bibbulmun starts....



Ride across the Nullarbor Plains:

Note there are no rest days in this proposed schedule and that is because some distances are so short that we will plan and compact days to create rest days. I expect we will easily do 100-120kms in a day depending on the winds... This means we will get at least one or two rest days in Adelaide.


DATE TOWN KMS
Devonport
(by ferry!)
Melbourne 0
Saturday, 7 March 2015 Geelong 80
Sunday, 8 March 2015 Camperdown 119
Monday, 9 March 2015 Warrnambool 68
Tuesday, 10 March 2015 Heywood 93
Wednesday, 11 March 2015 Mount Gambier 90
Thursday, 12 March 2015 Naracoorte 104
Friday, 13 March 2015 Coorong 168
Saturday, 14 March 2015 Victor Harbour 18
Sunday, 15 March 2015 Adelaide 90
Monday, 16 March 2015 Kadina 150
Tuesday, 17 March 2015
(meant to be a ferry for 50kms...)
Lock 201 
Wednesday, 18 March 2015 Elliston  92
Thursday, 19 March 2015 Port Kenny 70
Friday, 20 March 2015 Streaky Bay 62
Saturday, 21 March 2015 Ceduna 110
Sunday, 22 March 2015 Penong 73
Monday, 23 March 2015 Nundroo 79
Tuesday, 24 March 2015 Yalata 52
Wednesday, 25 March 2015 Nullarbor 93
Thursday, 26 March 2015 Border Village 186
Friday, 27 March 2015 Eucla  13
Saturday, 28 March 2015 Mundrabilla  66
Sunday, 29 March 2015 Madura 116
Monday, 30 March 2015 Cocklebiddy  91
Tuesday, 31 March 2015 Caiguna  65
Wednesday, 1 April 2015 Balladonia  154
Thursday, 2 April 2015 Fraser Range 117
Friday, 3 April 2015 Norseman 105
Saturday, 4 April 2015 Salmon Gums 97
Sunday, 5 April 2015 Esperance 104
Monday, 6 April 2015 Munglinup 106
Tuesday, 7 April 2015 Ravensthorpe 81
Wednesday, 8 April 2015 Jerramungup 116
Thursday, 9 April 2015 Manypeaks 139
Friday, 10 April 2015 Albany 40

Hike along Bibbulmun Track:
Note these are just proposed dates!

Sunday, 12 April 2015 Albany Hidden Valley  20 km
Monday, 13 April 2015 Hidden Valley Cosey Corner  15 km
Tuesday, 14 April 2015 Cosey Corner Torbay  2 km
Wednesday, 15 April 2015 Torbay West Cape Howe  16 km
Thursday, 16 April 2015 West Cape Howe Nulaki  17 km
Friday, 17 April 2015 Nulaki Denmark 14 km
Saturday, 18 April 2015 REST REST
Sunday, 19 April 2015 Denmark William Bay  21 km
Monday, 20 April 2015 William Bay Boat Harbour  20 km
Tuesday, 21 April 2015 REST REST
Wednesday, 22 April 2015 Boat Harbour Peaceful Bay  23 km
Thursday, 23 April 2015 Peaceful Bay Rame Head  11 km
Friday, 24 April 2015 Rame Head Giants 16 km
Saturday, 25 April 2015 Giants Franklin River  14 km
Sunday, 26 April 2015 Franklin River Walpole  18 km
Monday, 27 April 2015 REST REST
Tuesday, 28 April 2015 Walpole Mount Clare 10 km
Wednesday, 29 April 2015 Mount Clare Long Point 12 km
Thursday, 30 April 2015 Long Point Woolbales 17 km
Friday, 1 May 2015 Woolbales Mount Chance 20 km
Saturday, 2 May 2015 Mount Chance Dog Pool  19 km
Sunday, 3 May 2015 REST REST
Monday, 4 May 2015 Dog Pool Lake Maringup  25 km
Tuesday, 5 May 2015 Lake Maringup Gardner  16 km
Wednesday, 6 May 2015 Gardner Northcliffe  15 km
Thursday, 7 May 2015 Northcliffe Schaffer  14 km
Friday, 8 May 2015 Schaffer Warren  21 km
Saturday, 9 May 2015 Warren Pemberton  21 km
Sunday, 10 May 2015 REST REST
Monday, 11 May 2015 Pemberton Beedelup  24 km
Tuesday, 12 May 2015 Beedelup Beavis  19 km
Wednesday, 13 May 2015 Beavis Campsite Boardinghouse  19 km
Thursday, 14 May 2015 REST REST
Friday, 15 May 2015 Boardinghouse Tom Road  23 km
Saturday, 16 May 2015 Tom Road Donnelly River  16 km
Sunday, 17 May 2015 REST REST
Monday, 18 May 2015 Donnelly River Gregory Brook  21 km
Tuesday, 19 May 2015 Gregory Brook Blackwood  18 km
Wednesday, 20 May 2015 Blackwood Balingup  17 km
Thursday, 21 May 2015 REST REST
Friday, 22 May 2015 Balingup Grimwade  23 km
Saturday, 23 May 2015 Grimwade Noggerup  22 km
Sunday, 24 May 2015 Noggerup Yabberup  18 km
Monday, 25 May 2015 Yabberup Collie  20 km
Tuesday, 26 May 2015 REST REST
Wednesday, 27 May 2015 REST REST
Thursday, 28 May 2015 Harris Dam Yourdamung 15 km
Friday, 29 May 2015 Yourdamung Possum Springs 20 km
Saturday, 30 May 2015 Possum Springs Dookanelly  20 km
Sunday, 31 May 2015 Dookanelly Murray  18 km
Monday, 1 June 2015 Murray Swamp Oak  19 km
Tuesday, 2 June 2015 Swamp Oak Dwellingup  13 km
Wednesday, 3 June 2015 REST REST
Thursday, 4 June 2015 Dwellingup Chadoora  20 km
Friday, 5 June 2015 Chadoora Mount Wells  15 km
Saturday, 6 June 2015 Mount Wells White Horse Hill  15 km
Sunday, 7 June 2015 White Horse Hills Gringer Creek  18 km
Monday, 8 June 2015 Gringer Creek Bushstop  22 km
Tuesday, 9 June 2015 Bush Stop Monadnocks  20 km
Wednesday, 10 June 2015 REST REST
Thursday, 11 June 2015 Monadnocks Canning  16 km
Friday, 12 June 2015 Canning Mount Dale  20 km
Saturday, 13 June 2015 Mount Dale Waalegh  20 km
Sunday, 14 June 2015 Waalegh Ball Creek  18 km
Monday, 15 June 2015 Ball Creek Kalamunda  21 km

Ride across the Nullarbor

Riding from Devonport to Albany...  Just a start...

DATE TOWN KMS

Melbourne 0
Saturday, 1 March 2014 Geelong 80
Sunday, 2 March 2014 Camperdown 119
Monday, 3 March 2014 Warrnambool 68
Tuesday, 4 March 2014 Heywood 93
Wednesday, 5 March 2014 Mount Gambier 90
Thursday, 6 March 2014 Naracoorte 104
Friday, 7 March 2014 Coorong 168
Saturday, 8 March 2014 Victor Harbour 18
Sunday, 9 March 2014 Adelaide 90
Monday, 10 March 2014 Kadina 150
Tuesday, 11 March 2014 Lock 201 ferry 50km!
Wednesday, 12 March 2014 Elliston  92
Thursday, 13 March 2014 Port Kenny 70
Friday, 14 March 2014 Streaky Bay 62
Saturday, 15 March 2014 Ceduna 110
Sunday, 16 March 2014 Penong 73
Monday, 17 March 2014 Nundroo 79
Tuesday, 18 March 2014 Yalata 52
Wednesday, 19 March 2014 Nullarbor 93
Thursday, 20 March 2014 Border Village 186
Friday, 21 March 2014 Eucla  13
Saturday, 22 March 2014 Mundrabilla  66
Sunday, 23 March 2014 Madura 116
Monday, 24 March 2014 Cocklebiddy  91
Tuesday, 25 March 2014 Caiguna  65
Wednesday, 26 March 2014 Balladonia  154 all straight!
Thursday, 27 March 2014 Fraser Range 117
Friday, 28 March 2014 Norseman 105
Saturday, 29 March 2014 Salmon Gums 97
Sunday, 30 March 2014 Esperance 104
Monday, 31 March 2014 Munglinup 106
Tuesday, 1 April 2014 Ravensthorpe 81
Wednesday, 2 April 2014 Jerramungup 116
Thursday, 3 April 2014 Manypeaks 139
Friday, 4 April 2014 Albany 40

Monday, April 21, 2014

Am I the oldest person with CF?


Thank goodness there are plenty of people with Cystic Fibrosis older than me! What you do with your cystic fibrosis differs wildly. But no matter what you do the odds are generally against you. Some people have a career and family and that keeps them strong and motivated to be compliant and fight CF. I plan adventures and that motivates me to keep fit and healthy. Having a dog helps me get out thehouse  hail rain or shine for a decent walk with plenty of hills each day, or even a paddle in my kayak (with dog!). My adventure planning motivates me to ride my bicycle everywhere everyday around town - even though I now use an electric bike it still makes me cough (I consider the power the equivalent to a permanent tail wind).

But just to answer he question, here is the graph for Australia in 2012.  I still have room to move at 48.

I did see a graph indicating lung function decline, and that is more worrying. Hardly blowing 35% of expected is not a good place to be but I'm coping with it quite well. According to the below graph it is just about where statistics would project me at.


Thursday, April 17, 2014

The Way of CF now available on line!

Well, I am amazed! We have The Way of CF available on Amazon UK and US (links below). You can now have a full colour large format paperback book (100 pages, size of A4 paper roughly) to read about The Way of CF, walking the El Camino with Cystic Fibrosis!



Though you can find it on Amazon I suggest you buy it right from the source, which is CreateSpace
https://www.createspace.com/4717792 - and a $5 DISCOUNT COUPON for that link: G5K525BB

If you live in Australia, I am keeping some in stock and can mail them for AU$20. Any profits/donations are of course used to fund books that I donate to CF Associations or use as gifts to people with Cystic Fibrosis. And when details of  the 2015 Bibulmun Track become available, 1000kms hike through Western Australia, funds may be used to help fund postcards etc for that trip - watch out! Anyone who has a suggestion for a name for that fundraiser leave a comment or email bibulmun@cotu.biz !


PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW OF THE BOOK ON
GOODREADS or AMAZON!






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