Who
Am I?
My name is Sam Brenkel, I am a 26 year old from Scotland, UK. I have always been a keen sportsman, regularly playing rugby, cricket and tennis in my younger days. As my twenties roll on, I have increasingly moved away from team sports and moved towards individual endurance sports. I maintain that this is purely coincidental and not because I have grown weary of being continuously let down by teammates, but that is open to debate. I have lived almost my entire life in Aberdour, a picturesque village on the South coast of Fife. My high school years were spent at Dollar Academy in the foothills of the Ochil Hills. I then continued my education at Heriot Watt University in Edinburgh, including one exchange year at the illustrious SciencePo Paris. Upon graduation from university, I decided to embark on my first and, to this day, only foray into endurance travelling. In 2012, I cycled 3,800 miles coast to coast across America, alone and unsupported, raising £6,000 for charity (find out more). I have been living and working in Dubai for the past three years, but I am now ready to return back to my home continent and take on this mammoth challenge.
What
Is this?
In summer 2016, I will travel from John O’Groats to the Black Sea. Contrary to what the title suggests, there will certainly not be any jogging involved. The journey will consist of four stages, encompassing three different modes of transport. I will start by cycling from John O’Groats to Dover, travelling down the east coast of the UK from top to bottom. The next section will see me attempt the brutal swim across the English Channel from Dover to Calais. At least 40km of swimming in freezing water, high waves, strong currents across one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, this is considered by many as the ultimate open water swimming challenge. From here, I will then hop back onto the bike and cycle south east to Donaueschingen in Germany which signals the start of the Danube River. I will then attempt to kayak the entire length of the Danube, Europes second longest river. Learning to kayak as I go, I will pass through 10 countries before paddling through the Danube Delta and into the Black Sea, finally ending my 5000km journey. You can find full details of each stage by following the Cycle, Swim and Kayak links at the top of the page.
Why
Do this?
The reason for doing this trip is pretty simple; because I want to. Each individual part of this trip is something that I have wanted to do for a while and combining them into one large adventure simply made sense (in my mind at least). I got a huge amount of pride and self-satisfaction from completing my cycle across America, it gave me the opportunity to meet some great people and experience a country in a very intimate way. I want this journey to inspire others, I want to spread the message that anyone can achieve anything. You don’t need to be a professional, you don’t need extreme levels of talent and it doesn’t take an unrealistic amount of money to achieve your dreams. I want to show that with sufficient commitment and motivation, any human can achieve their ambitions and provide inspiration for others to do the same. Very few people change the whole world, but we are all capable of changing someone’s world. That is one of the main messages that I want to emanate from this journey.
The idea of changing someones world ties directly in with the terrific work that both the charities I am representing are doing. Throughout the journey, I will be highlighting some of their amazing work and how you can help. For now, you can find full details of Restless Development and PEAS by visiting their websites.
A final key theme of this journey will be the importance of exercise. In this world of fast food and faster internet, it is increasingly difficult to get out there and get active. I am not advising that people follow my diet throughout this trip (it will be horrendously gluttonous) but I do hope that the JOG can inspire you to strive towards a more active and therefore healthier lifestyle. Realistically the likelihood is that you don’t have the time to do a 5000km journey across Europe, but it is amazing how much difference even a small amount of physical activity can make. Throughout my trip, I will be highlighting the benefits of physical exercise, as well as asking you to share details of your own experiences.