Tom and Dave’s BIG Ride

all the best from skipper and my house m8s, hope all is going well and u havnt fallen off your bike recently. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Good luck to you both!

I am really jealous – daughter and partner won’t let me join you for some reason!

As you are my cousins son Tom (thats got you thinking!) and its such a good cause I have started fund raising for you in the Midlands.

Good luck, can I buy you both some slime strips?

Hi Dave & Tom

Can you give us an address to send a cheque, and say who it should be made out to.

Thanks and all the very best for your trip.

Pat & Gill Bird

Have you left yet? I have a rucksack lock which may be useful – let me know if you would like to borrow it. We are really looking forward to following your progress and will be telling the cubs about how you are getting on.

Hi Dave and Tom,
Just wanted to wish you all the best before you head off. You’ll have the time of your lives, no doubt about it (but if youre anything like us, after about 3 months you’ll wish you’d done it on motorbikes )
I’ll definitely keep checking up here to see how youre going!
Suerte!
Blenka

P.S. banana and jam sandwiches are brilliant

A special message from Ali’s Dream just to say that what you are doing is fab!!
We wish you lots of luck and look forward to reading about your adventures!!
Simon and his family must be very proud of you as we are.

A lovely tribute to Adam.

Just wanted to say how proud we are of you both.
Stay safe and speak to you soon
All our love

Hello!

Just thought I’d say good luck to both of you! And Dave, never though I’d see the day you were is SPD’s, tut tut ; )
Have a great time!

Paul Hayward

Hey Davey P
Loving the updates, I should have told Tom to watch out for extreme wind whilst travelling with you! Glad to hear you’re both having some fun as well as cycling hard. I hope it was just Dave who ate the birthday steak…or is Veg no longer veggie?!
Thinking of you & wishing you well,
Lots of love
Jayne x

Guys this is not a journey you will “complete” in nine months. Nor a month at a time, or a week at a time but it will be a day at a time and sometimes, when it’s tough, an hour at a time. Well done so far. I did a minibus assessment for one of Tom’s old teachers at Freman College a Canadian chap whos name I don’t have to hand – last year he took time out and cycled across Canada he said he allowed himself to quit a day but not the journey – he actually didn’t quit any days but knowing he allowed himself to helped (so he said) he wishes you both well – me to. I will be adding the donation from the Old Time Music Hall soon just over £300 – You are in our thoughts and prayers.

Hi Dave,

Am so ridiculously jealous of your adventures – any room for a little one?!

You are doing a fantastic job – keep up the good work.

Take care of you both.
Lots of love xXx

Hi Tom and Dave
Glad to see some of what we taught you is being put to good use. We had a carol singing evening at Tesco’s last Thursday and raised £280, half of which will go to your funds, the other half to our Headquarters fund.
Good luck and keep going.
Bob Cooper
GSL 1st Braughing Scout Group

Hola Tom y Dave. Feliz Navidad y una Feliz Año Nuevo. ¡Esperanza que usted permanece bastante sobrio para completar un ciclo!
Para Derek (Akela) y Margaret y Philip

Hi Tom and dave,mums updated us on your progress, your doing very well. have a nice xmas in the sun, were off to cyprus, good luck for the next leg of your journey. stay safe, love gloria and john xx

hello tom its megan and bronte and jo

we are having boxing day dinner together nanny and da are here too, we had lots of cold meat patatoes cheese and tatty pie and eggs from our chickens. father christmas brought us a tv for our bedroom. we got daddy 2 wii games 1 was monster truck driving the other was a mixture of crazy games.Ihope your cycling is going welland you had a nice xmas.We’ll follow you on your journey

lots of love and a happy new year

Hi Tom and Dave,
We just wanted to say Happy Christmas and have a great New Year. You are both doing so well, keep it up. Be careful and stay safe. Love the Koutsoumanis clan. (Elysia’s family)

Hi Tom ;
Love reading your adventures sounds amazing well done to both of you wishing you a great new year all the best keep safe
Love Cathy.

Hey Tom and Dave.
Nice one, have enjoyed reading blogs so far. Hope you had a great Christmas and enjoy your new year.
Chin up!
Sara G

hellooo Tom and Dave,

Your mum suggested that i wrote to you both.I cant believe how far you have gone- ALREADY! I hope you guys had a great christmas out in the hot weather- unlike us in the freezing cold! You guys are having the best experience and good luck for the next bit of your ride. AND!! what about the singed posters from Lewis Hamilton?! Thats pretty cool.

Well Done and keep going good for the rest of your journey. I will keep track of where you have got to.

Love Charlotte x

Hey guys good to see your doing good there! HAPPY NEW YEAR hope you had a good Christmas out there. Keep going. The photos look amazing apart from the one on your Facebook Dave lol. Anyway take care of yourselves over there and keep going.
Love Sue, Lee, Jody, Adam and Louisa.

hey guys! how it going? sound like you to are having a blast!!! although it sounds very hard as well!you’ll be so musclely when you get back you’ll be able to give better bear hugs than bear!!! me an dtom missed you over christmas andnew year, and the rest of the time of course!! wasnt the same with out crimbo drinks with out u guys!!
you two keep safe, speak soon hopefuly!

love sam x x x x x x x

Gday Tom and Dave

Just learned how to use email I think! So proud of you both and lovely to see the photos. Seems you are having the experience of a lifetime. Just spent a week with mum and dad Tom in Melbourne and I hope they are in Sydney now having taken off with their little mobie home. Terrible bush fires here since Saturday just up the road from where we are lots of homes and lives lostbut the temperature was 47 with a gale. Lot cooler now. Still love it here in Oz especially as tons of snow in UK. Anyway take good care of yourselves sorry to hear of your stomach bugs. Hope you both are better. Will try email again if I have got the hang of it!
Lots of love Nanny & Da xxxxxxx

gday Tom and Dave

At library just read your latest update. Have been back and forward here since 15th Jan. (your latest update) like a yo yo waiting for more news. Know what that heat is like as it was 47 degrees here when bushfires started. Whole villages wiped out and 209 so fire dead. As we are in the middle of woods and absolutely surrounded by trees and dry grass we just keep our fingers crossed and a couple of buckets of water outside the door. Sounds good now that your bugs have subsided and you have found the natives generous especially with food! Keep well and take care.
Love Nanny & Da

Hi lads, glad all is going well again now, just caught up on your activities, stomach bugs I can’t cope with here let alone out there in that heat etc… glad you both seem better now. Sounds awesome the lovely scenery, can’t wait to see the pics… James sends his regards from NZ, was asking how you were doing. Saw Tom S cycling in Puckeridge the other day, laiden with bottles of water…. ready to meet you folks. Well keep going and we will catch you again soon.
Love Linda and Andy …… keep pushing, you are doing well xx

Hi guys, great to read your updates again – the cubs are enjoying them being read to them like an adventure serial story! – It was Founders Day last weekend and the collection taken during the service is coming to you – Simon Smith (Bear) is dealing with that and it is a nice round hundred pounds – keep up the good work and keep the blog updated – I think there are a lot of people like me that keep looking often to read the updates. hasta luego

Gday Tom and Dave

Still Keeping track of you at local ibrary and maps here. Sounds great and am fascinated how you keep meeting up with Oliver etc. in such a big country. Bet you are looking forward to meeting up with Tom when he comes out and showing him what its all about. How are you going to follow this adventure now when you get back life will be so tame. Pleased to hear the locals are so good to you. Fires have calmed down here as we like you have had some rain after over 90 days. Everything was tinder dry and ready to light, what with the tsunami we also do see life! Anyway sadly only another couple of weeks here so will keep going to the library till then. Take care

Love Nanny and Da..xx

hi guys,
Just been looking at the photos – they are brilliant. It is nice to see that you are doing bits of cultural stuff as well eg the architecture and national costume type photos and Dave, when did you learn to write?!! only joking. It looks like you are keeping a journal what a brilliant idea. The cubs AGM entertainment is going to be loosley based on you two and should be videod so will show it to you when you get back. Thanks for photo’s and updates it allows us to be vicarious travellers with you. Take care of yourselves.
Derek/Akela

Hey Guys hows it going on your big adventure just thought i would catch up and say hi!!
Im in Christchurch at the min so just chilling in the sun. sounds like you are bith still having loads of fun, will be awesome to see you and finally here what other unpublisable stuff has happened.

Glad your keeping up on your cultral learings. hope you keep opn pedaling!!

James

Hi guys,
I looked up some useful phrases you might need:-
Los siento mucho = I’m very sorry
cuanto es la multa? = how much is the fine?
no tengo suficiente = I dont’ have enough
puedo pagar en la comisaria? = can I pay at the police station?
quisiera llamar a mi embajada = I would like to phone my embassy.
Dave hacer yo hacer la = Dave made me do it.
mi amigo jubilado el policia = my friend is a retired police man
lets hope you don’t need them!
Derek/Akela

Hey you 2,
Read your comment about the driving, sounds mental and how can anybody be that bad or worse than me. sounds like your still having a wicked time.

James

Happy St. George’s Day
From Akela & Co

Hi Tom, Your old Dad gave me this site address and I will be following your progress; my money will be on you, boy, so drive those pedals ! You’re a chip of the old block, so I’m sure you’ll smash the 100kph barrier down some damned mountain !
All the very best,

David S

Keep going lads, you are doing so well, can’t wait to see the photo’s when you return…. glad Tom arrived safely, love reading what you are getting up to……. keep pushing…… xxx
Linda and Andy

FINISHED. What an acheivement, we are so proud of you both. Cant wait till you come home and we hear all about it.
Have a good holiday and stay safe
Lots and lots of love mum and dad and john

Well done both of you, you have done so well, we are all so proud of you and what a huge achievement. We look forward to hearing all about it when you return. What a fantastic time you have had too, ups and downs, I think you both deserve a beer or two on your return, (maybe even a brewery!) Have a safe journey back home….
lots of love, Linda, Andy, James and Lizzie

Congratulations!

Gents. Many congratulations on finishing your ride. I’ve been following your progress for a while now. We met briefly in Cohaique, Chile, where we were buying tickets for the ferry. Since then I’ve not been far behind you and almost caught up with you in Trujiilo, but you’d left the Casa de Ciclistas the day before I arrived. Enjoy your remaining time in the Caribbean, looking forward to getting there myself soon. Dave

Hi guys

Congratulations on your epic ride. We have loved reading about your journey especially during the 3 months that we were in South Ameria. It was a shame that our paths never crossed. Enjoy your well earned rest from the saddle.
Diane, Peter & Paul

Do you still look at this web site? I do! You ought to finish the blog off and maybe publish the blog in a book form along with photographs – how’s that for an idea? – what do others think?

hi!!!!!!!

Im from colombia and im suprice CONGRATULATIONS luck in other travel