Singapore to Sweden to raise breast cancer awareness and breast cancer research fund

[doctor phil]

in three years time two mad doctors are going to take a fairly long ride from singapore NUS to swedens karolinska institute. the plan is to increase breast cancer awareness with the help of collaborators in thailand, burma, pakistan, bangladesh and india (so far). we also hope to raise funds for breast cancer research at the NUS

 

i would be grateful for any one with experience in taking bike across countries and especially over the northwest frontier area, which we anticipate will be the most dangerous. most importantly the reasonably safest route to take. we have a lot of people willing to help but feel that in essence this is a biking adventure and would like to turn to bikers for help

 

please send to this thread will update regularly. any opinions welcome.

 

doctor phil

Edited March 5, 2012 by Simon Soh

[burnjr]

u must get your carnet first..

so far for my experiend all country u can ride except burma(mymar( not allowed bike to cross the country)since 1-893

[doctor phil]

thanks burnjr. yes the carnet is an ordeal to look forward to. thankfully we have some influence and will be able to get through burma, apparently its quite beautiful. thinking on getting to CHITTAGONG in bangla but after that expect a real ordeal getting throgh bangla, bihar and uttar p. expect to take a whole month

[burnjr]

nice to hear u acan get into mymar..love it.anyway hv nice journey..by cross over mymar u short you travel

[doctor phil]

hey burnjr

 

thanks for the tip. anyplace you'd recommend in Myanmar?

[doctor phil]

those of you who are still keeping track of this thread, have just got NUS approval and will now start to seriously raise funds. any advice on bike shops that might be keen to be sponsors?

[Fredd]

so wad bikes u guys are goin to ride? any blogs or sumtin we cn look at?

[Singapore Cancer Society]

Hi there!

We are from the Singapore Cancer Society and we think its wonderful that you are helping to increase breast cancer awareness. We are celebrating Daffodil Days at the moment, to give hope to cancer patients in Singapore. We would like to know the inspiration for your fund raising event, and hope you can share your story on either our Facebook Page at

http://www.facebook.com/DaffodilDaysSingapore.

 

Alternatively, you can share your cancer stories at http://www.daffodildays.sg/cancerstory.html.

 

We hope to hear from you and all the best in your adventure to Sweden, it sounds so exciting!

 

Warmest regards,

Jamie Choon on behalf of the Singapore Cancer Society

[doctor phil]

hey fredd

 

thanks for the interest. we started out on the principle that we should both ride the same bikes. there are many practical reasons for this - ease of repair and maintenance, supply chain, even support from vendors. unfortunately the overriding principle we were advised was that we should ride bikes we loved. and this meant bikes we presently like.

 

so mikes going on a 2009 BMW GSA, and i will be taking a suzuki vstrom 1000. completely different bikes, although we both agree they are both just as ugly

 

the blog page is coming up. we are already on facebook look for an event called the Long Reach Around and you'll see updates. we are both of an age where blogging, er tweeting and the rest of it does not come naturally, so we'll concentrate on itinerary first and will start the blog when this is settled

 

will keep you posted meanwhile on this forum page as well

[doctor phil]

Hi there!

We are from the Singapore Cancer Society and we think its wonderful that you are helping to increase breast cancer awareness. We are celebrating Daffodil Days at the moment, to give hope to cancer patients in Singapore. We would like to know the inspiration for your fund raising event, and hope you can share your story on either our Facebook Page at

http://www.facebook.com/DaffodilDaysSingapore.

 

Alternatively, you can share your cancer stories at http://www.daffodildays.sg/cancerstory.html.

 

We hope to hear from you and all the best in your adventure to Sweden, it sounds so exciting!

 

Warmest regards,

Jamie Choon on behalf of the Singapore Cancer Society

 

last place i expected to hear from the singapore cancer society!

thanks for the llinks, will get up a contribution to the facebook page soon, limiting the SBF to bike and trip related matters, as its function appears to be

many thanks for the interest

 

doctor phil

[MERCENARY]

Let us know what help you need,i will chip in with my knowledge and etc.

 

Regarding sponsors,you look for moderator Kushinagar for help,since he organised Singapore bike week.

He will have the contacts,knowledge and most probably who to aim for.Good luck i will support your idea.

 

You will need to plan for petrol stops,spare parts,where to change engine oil and tools.

Your lugguage would be tons,for such a long haul.

[doctor phil]

hello mercenary and thanks for the offer for help we could certainly use it

 

am in the midst of setting up what is called a "blog" site. i know it sound like a small thing but i am pre generation X. i remember a time when all the Beatles were alive.

 

who is this Kushinagar? the fund raising we are directing at corporate sponsorships and pharmas because of our professional links but if there is anyone out there whom you think can help us from the biking angle that would be perfect. if you ask me i think the best sponsor is Mustafas. i could give them the front of my chest on the riding suit. everyone in india and pakistan knows them!

 

there are some things that an old hand like yourself could help us with:

 

need a place to learn how to fix bikes on the road. any suggestions?

have not done any offroading for a while and any courses on this would be great.

right now my main effort is deciding on the route. the big question is whether or not anyone has got their private vehicles into china. if not its through iran and turkey...

 

lemme know if any of this tickles your fancy to get involved in

 

warmest

 

dr phil

[aloha]

From what I've read, China is a ***** to get through due to all the red tape. It's easier to go through Iran and Turkey. You might want to read through the blogs of several bikers who have done round the world trips. That would provide you with some help on route planning.

 

Here are the links:

1) http://singaporedream-rtw.blogspot.com/

2) http://www.wheezyrider.com/

 

Best wishes!

 

aloha

[doctor phil]

ok itineray is coming together. in malaysia we stop at KL and penang because of meeting with local collaborators. in thailand the usual stop at hat yai, then surat thani, prachaup kiri kan where we might lie on the beach for a bit, then kanchannaburi, sukothai and chiangmai where we meet more collaborators.

 

cross over to myanmar is in the usual place at mae hong son. have been told by all sorts of myanmese military doctors that we have worked with in the past that they can get our selves and bike OK through myanmar but truthfully have no intention of staying any longer than nec. the route plan is through mandalay and then north west to enter india through the moreh imphal highway, which should be our first exposure to the mountains.

 

if all goes well this should take about three weeks, and hopefully a month to get through india, details to follow. anyone with an opinion on this route, or more interesting alternatives, please let me know.

[antartica]

this is amazing!

i have no experience in this field but my mum in law is recovering from breast cancer (early stage 1) and my wife just had a breast cancer scare (fibrosis)

 

i totally dig this and am not sure how and where I would be able to support, but am all for it

 

all the best Dr Phil

[ORen]

You could support by donating money to their fund raising

 

Dr Phil, here's where I can help:

 

- If you need help with the blog, have questions or need a hand to setup something

- Can put you in touch through FB with riders who have been riding where you are going. 1 guy who did RTW trip recently (still at it actually), coming from europe to our shores, and a couple who just crossed india etc to get here - they will be in SG this Week or the next.

 

Let me know, my FB is http://fb.me/bikeretteoren and http://fb.me/bikerette

 

Never been to Myanmar or further west so I can't help much on the itinerary.

For the off road courses, you can contact these guys and ask: http://www.facebook.com/groups/mssclist/

I would suggest you actually post a new thread here on SBF (Singapore Bikes Forum), or look it up in existing threads, asking specifically for recommendations for good off road training

 

For the sponsoring part - I'd go for a mass email and tour of local bikeshops, dealers and reseller.

Go for the big names first, and official retailers, starting with Suzuki and BMW. This does not have to be limited to SG ! Any country you cross should be considered - and of course Sweden too, they're more likely to be interested being your destination.

Also, check the "adventure" shops: anything outdoorsy, they can supply you with luggage and other camping material (if you need it), in exchange for a banner or simple reference to them on your blog.

Do market your FB and blog advertising space : you might not think you are too into the latest online stuff, but businesses know that is how everyone will follow you, promote your trip and raise awareness.

 

Not only can you save money on your trip but you can more importantly get yourself good quality gear and peace of mind on the road. I believe the purpose of the trip has a great appeal to it, and anyone can understand and relay to the cause, which should make sponsors keen to chip in.

 

And you are probably already working on it, but look up the passport and visa requirements for the countries you think you will cross. Carnet is one thing, sometimes simple visas can become an issue and it's good to research it long enough in advance.

 

3 years is a great length of time to get ready but it's also quite long - maybe you can organize yearly a small event with NUS to promote the trip ? Just an idea to raise awareness and maybe get sponsors onboard early.

 

It's a fantastic idea, for an important cause, kudos for organizing this !

[doctor phil]

ok peeps

 

have done my homework and it appears that pakistan west of quetta is generally considered no go. i was afraid of that because it means going through the stans to get into iran, and that means going through china. any recommendations on whom to contact for getting private bikes through china?

[yem_paul]

ok peeps

 

have done my homework and it appears that pakistan west of quetta is generally considered no go. i was afraid of that because it means going through the stans to get into iran, and that means going through china. any recommendations on whom to contact for getting private bikes through china?

 

Check your inbox. I've PM you Chinese contacts. Good luck.

[doctor phil]

ok after some consideration i have settled on the bike. any strong opinions on taking an F800 GS? or where i might be able to find one?

[doctor phil]

thanks to yem-paul for the great advice on getting into china. its being looked into and hopefully some news will come soon. its just that we are trying to get into xinjiang which is not the usual route into china, to say the least. will let you know how it turns out

 

on the bike issue the F800 sale did not work out, think i will spend the money optising my present vstrom 1000, and learning how to do the roadside repairs. any opinions on what should be added on? my bikes pretty much all stock except for windscreen, H/Becker boxes and crash bars....

[yem_paul]

Yempaul didn't do much. It's just sharing of information. What you're doing is for a bigger cause. Do let us know what comes along.