October 14, 2015
Today is a good day as I can announce that both the RV and the flights are now booked. On the 29th August I will be leaving the UK and heading to America ready to start the ride on the 1st of September.
Myself and Robert fly from Manchester on Monday 29th of August and arrive in San Fransisco (SF) on the 30th (Tuesday) at 3pm in the afternoon. Unfortunately the flight isn’t direct, with us stopping in Copenhagen for 14 hours before boarding for America. I can sleep anywhere so I’m happy to just find a bench in the airport but Rob can get a bit grouchy when tired so we might have to get him a hotel room!
When we get to SF we have the rest of the night to relax, rest and have a look around. Then the following day (31st) we will be picking up the RV vehicle and hopefully getting some photos for the press before getting a good nights sleep ready for the big departure early the next day.
Twenty eight days later we should be on the opposite side of the country in New York (NY). We fly back to the UK on the 30th, two days after I (hopefully) will have finished the ride. This gives us a day to get take RV vehicle back and also experience NY. My workplace Stein IAS have bases in both SF and NY so there are going to be some friendly faces at both ends.
We leave NY on the 30th September at 17:30 and – because of the time difference – arrive back in Manchester at 09:30 on Saturday 1st October. I don’t want to think about it whatsoever yet but I imagine we will arrive drunk!
Flights aren’t available until around 50 weeks in advance so I’ve had to wait around to get these booked. I still need to book the extra luggage (bikes etc) onto the plane but that can wait a little.
The RV wasn’t quite as simple as the flights and this time last week I was panicking because it became apparent that there aren’t actually that many RV companies who could cater for our needs. We had to be able to pick up from SF and drop in NY. That, combined with the ride clashing with a festival called the burning man, meant that the RV’s were selling out fast.
I couldn’t actually get the RV that I wanted so had to go for this 7 berth monster which was a little bit extra money but there was literally nothing else left! I imagine we will be grateful for the extra space once we get moving, we both get double beds put it that way. The RV seems to be equipt with everything we need including the bathroom, air con, kitchen etc. It’s a massive 30ft and does a woeful 7-10mpg, I hope Rob’s going to be ok driving it!
The RV company were called Road Bear and after explaining to them what I was doing, I received my first form of corporate sponsorship. Edwin, the general manager, knocked me the $700 one way fare from my invoice. After sending over 200 emails to businesses this was the first one that had offered me anything in terms of financial support and I was very, very grateful for this. If anyone’s looking for a RV company in America then look no further than Road Bear!
The flights and especially the RV vehicle cost a significant amount of money, probably over three/four months wages for most people. I’m still actively looking for sponsors who could help in any way with the costs of a ride that will benefit so many children with deafness and cancer.
I feel massively relieved now that these two main things are booked and it’s a massive weight off my shoulders. I have a huge list of other stuff to sort but at least we’ve a flight there and somewhere to live! I can now focus on my training for a few months before I start the nail all the logistics of the actual event. Thanks to everyone who helped me with these bookings!
Shane x
