First entry - seven and half weeks left

I have never ever blogged before, but then again I have never ever cycled across Ethiopia before, or ever believed I could. And do I believe it now, with less than 8 weeks to go? Perhaps.. on a good day I believe I can 'probably' do it. On a bad day there is absolutely no chance, and I am convinced I will sit in a cloud of my own shame in the back of a four-wheel-drive while 'real' cyclists pedal easily and happily up massive hills all around me.

I turn 30 in less than a week - it's all the fault of the big 3-O, and the silly suggestion by some of last year's cyclists that I should do it myself. I have done the trip - twice - as a member of the staff support team. I have ridden up those hills in a truck, and helped to cook food, put up tents and entertain tired cyclists. I can't kid myself - I know how steep those hills are, I know how hot it gets, and I know that even experienced, 'cycle up hills all the time' type cyclists often struggle.

So why am I doing it? I in fact have a very good reason - and that keeps me going through all the gruelling training and difficult fundraising. Up to 1 in 7 women die in pregnancy or childbirth in some parts of Ethiopia. That figure sickens me to the core. Women younger - much younger - than me, without the access to good quality maternity care or medical intervention when needed, are dying in their millions around the world. Every minute a woman dies somewhere in pregnancy or childbirth somewhere in the world. It's not fair, not fair at all. So I am raising £2,000 for the work of Maternity Worldwide, and hopefully raising awareness of their work as I cycle across difficult terrain to their project in Gimbie, Western Ethiopia.

So when I'm moaning through training rides (which I do!) and cringing at the thought of having to arrange yet another 'charity singles night' (which I also do!), I try to think about the difference all this effort will make to the work of Maternity Worldwide, and ultimately to women in western Ethiopia.

Who am I to wonder if I will "survive" the bike ride? Of course I will survive - it will be really hard work but I'll get there. Much lower odds of survival go to the woman in Ethiopia who just got pregnant, who lives 3 days walk from the nearest hospital, and who can't afford the care she needs when she gets there. Let's hope that she survives.

If you want to support my Ethiopia Bike Ride Challenge, please visit my fundraising page on www.justgiving.com/lee_cycles_ethiopia. Messages of encouragement and support are also really important, and keep my legs turning those pedals!