After a particularly indulgent Christmas I was looking for an exciting challenge while raising money for a worthy cause. MAG’s (Mines Advisory Group) Death Valley Cycle Ride seemed a perfect opportunity to help make a difference. On November 3rd I will be cycling over 430 km in 5 days through Americas largest National Park, Dea
th Valley, which boasts the world's highest ever recorded temperature at 134F. The route is anything but flat, with altitudes ranging from sea level to 5500 ft.
MAG works with local people to alleviate the effects of UXO (unexploded ordnance) injuries, trains teams to remove the devices, and provides education about their dangers (particularly to children, who are drawn to these often brightly coloured, ball sized bombs). Anti-personnel mines, cluster bombs and other non-specific killing devices are still being manufactured and used around the world (Iraq and Lebanon being recent examples).
Landmines cause some 18,000 casualties a year – one every 30 minutes. A third of the direct victims are children, and the impact of mines is far greater than the immediate injuries: a single mine (or even just the suspicion of one) creates the perception of a minefield and this denies freedom of movement, in some cases preventing access to farmland, water or essential services.
Although the Ottawa Convention, which came into force in 1999, has almost completely eradicated the global production and use of anti-personnel mines, there is a huge legacy of mines previously deployed in times of conflict: estimates indicate about 60-70 million landmines remain in war-torn countries worldwide . The Mines Advisory Group (MAG) works to clear the remnants of conflict from some of the world’s poorest countries.
Please don't just “switch off” from what appears to be yet another charity appeal. I'm not brave enough to go and disarm mines myself, but I'm hoping to raise significant funds for MAG in order that they can continue to train and support those who are. To that end, I'm asking for YOUR support in donating as much as you feel able, to sponsor me in MAG's DEATH VALLEY CYCLE CHALLENGE.
So far Edward has raised....
£2,707.00