People / cycling
Clifton College student cycling around the world
After A-Levels, most students are eager to relax and have some time for themselves.
But Clifton College student Charlie Condell had other ideas, and is instead celebrating the end of his exams with an 18,000-mile bike trip around the world.
Now two weeks into his epic journey, 18-year-old Charlie crossed into Austria on July 19 where he hit the 1,000-mile mark.
is needed now More than ever
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bk–Vg_nzQ2/?taken-by=rtwcharlie
Despite having barely started his journey, Charlie has already seen some wonders of the world including the Alps, and has even witnessed a drugs bust in the English Gardens in Munich.
“I had my first day off yesterday, and as I was walking through I saw police put on their sirens, jump out of their undercover BMW, and knock a bunch of these guys to the ground!” he told Bristol24/7 by phone from Germany.
Has Charlie got any advice for anyone else thinking of taking on the feat of endurance?
“Don’t bother trying to train would be my advice! I had A-levels up until two weeks before the start, so no chance of training.
“But I do feel that if you’ve even got to the idea of doing something like this then you must be in a reasonable state of fitness, so actually even if you can’t do 100 miles from the start – or whatever your intended distance – with the right food and mindset, you can absolutely make it!”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BlbDlSyHoA_/?taken-by=rtwcharlie
Londoner Tom Davies currently holds the title for youngest person to cycle the world when he completed the challenge in 2015 aged 19; a record which Charlie will beat if he finishes his journey.
Charlie hopes this will be the first of many expeditions. “I had the rather wonderful thought of using a pedalo to cross some larger bodies of water if this cycling around the world thing is a success,” he said.
“I’d also love to climb some mountains. There’s a volcano in Ecuador called Chimborazo which although is not the highest on Earth from sea level, is actually the furthest from the centre of the Earth, making it the highest in another respect.
“In this modern world, I think that exploring has changed. Unless you want to map the sea floor, as humans we’ve covered a very large proportion of the Earth. In this respect, we’ve got to be creative and think of new challenges as we evolve as a race. There will always be a need for adventure.”
Follow Charlie’s journey on his Blog, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook
Charlie has also set-up a crowdfunding page to support his journey
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