How it all began...

Yes, Ben Miles, doing a bike ride! Started off being just a good one from Barcelona back to Mansfield. Thought I would try and raise some money for kids at the same time.My brother Gary said it wasn’t big enough so now I have made it grow a bit to get more people interested to raise as much money as I can.Now I am riding from Cape Nordkinn North of Norway to Gibraltar. This is from the furthest point in northern Europe to the furthest point in southern Europe (and encompassing the top of UK to the bottom!)
Small problem is I am as fit as a sloth!!
I have stopped smoking now for 2 weeks, stopped eating crap and junk food and am now losing weight and training every day, doing Slimming World's Extra Easy Food Optimising.
I wanted to do this by the 1st October 2010, but my sister is asking me to push this back 5-6 months to allow more time for training and to organize the events and sponsorship.
I am aiming at 200 miles a day but we are planning to organize the trip based on 150 miles a day to allow for weather and fatigue etc. I am doing all this at my own cost, so any money raised goes direct to the kids and not a penny to the support team, equipment or accommodation. I am giving this to mum's (Slimming World's) registered charity, SMILES (Slimmer’s Making It a Little Easier for Someone) and so with no admin costs (Slimming World deals with all the admin free of charge), all monies can go straight to SMILE's chosen charity which is the NSPCC Child's Voice Appeal. www.slimming-world.com My intention is to donate the money raised to both the NSPCC via SMILES and also to the kids of Mallorca, although still at the early stages of this idea so there are many question still to be answered and information to find out. Meeting next week to try and find the best charity for the kids in Mallorca.
The support from family and friends has been phenomenal! My brother Gary is driving the support car, my sister Claire is organizing sponsors, and Slimming World will be organizing a lot too all to be confirmed. My best friend Cenk is also helping with the logistics of the trip. Being trained by an ex professional cyclist, Guido, check his web site out: www.lifestyle-cycling.net. OK, confession time, a secret little weapon who will be training me in the gym, I will let you know more about him in the future. And the last part is over here in Mallorca, Mood Beach Club (www.moodbeach.com) will be organizing some events over here.
So far I have lost 8kg in 8 weeks and for the last 2 weeks have been training every day. On the 22nd November I did my first big bike ride just to test the water and went from Puerto Portals to Alcudia and half way back before I nearly died of a sore bum. I did 107km in 7 hours. Not the best performance but at least a start! On the 8th December I went on another ride with my cycle trainer that I now have and did 60 km in 3 hours. Still got sore bum! (Note to self, must find a better saddle for this trip, or I'll become Falsetto, long before the trip!) In the gym daily doing something! I'm desperately unfit, have hardly any strength at all, so I am really starting at square one. Without a doubt a have bitten of more than I can chew - at the moment! I have a lot of training to do to get to a level of Tour de France or Iron Man standard. I am excited with the goal I have but also full of fears and forebodings. Still, that's what makes it exciting I suppose. I will do this if it nearly kills me, so just wish me luck. I will keep my wall posted regular with each new step I take on this nigh impossible trip!As soon as I have the official proposal I will add it to my wall too.

WISH ME LUCK!!!