Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Charity Mission to Conquer Americas Taking Shape



09-01-2009 Charity Mission to Conquer Americas Taking Shape

By Bryan Kay
Staff Reporter, The Korea Times, National English Newspaper.

One man's mission to conquer the Americas in [2012] in aid of charity is starting to take shape.

Canadian Brian Perich, 36, who lives in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, is bidding to raise thousands of dollars for the Canadian and American branches of the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation.

The journey awaiting him is mammoth: from a standing start in Anchorage, Alaska, onto the Canadian Arctic and all the way down to Argentina and the southernmost portion of the continent.

And now he has secured an event promoter, interest from possible riding companions and the bike to be used for the expedition.

``I now have IDEAS (the Intestinal Disease Awareness and Education Society) going to organize my campaign and do all the management, so things are going well. [Robert Hill], Mountaineer and Crohn's survivor founded IDEAS and he is leading a team up Kilimanjaro with IBDadventures to raise awareness and charity support for IBD-inflammatory bowel disease research for a cure. Hill started the IBDadventures group and is campaigning as a Crohn's survivor to climb the world's seven highest peaks, including a bid for Mount Kilimanjaro in September" said Perich, who is the man behind Korea expat cycling group Cycling International.

``I have had a couple of people approach me (about the possibility of joining in). One said he is really interested and the second guy rode across Canada to raise money for cancer research.

``The other good thing is I have now got a sponsorship donation in the form of the expedition bike from Commuter Bicycles in Santa Barbara in California."

While donations have yet to start rolling in, Perich said he is delighted with the response there has been to his grand plan, which is dubbed ``One Cycle, One Man (+Riders), One Charity, Global Bike from the Arctic."

He also revealed that he is using the world expedition being undertaken by Danish cyclist Nicolai Bangsgaard and a Canadian coast-to-coast adventure as inspiration for his trek.

``Nicolai Bangsgaard is actually riding the same bike as I am going to be using. He is going around the world until 2010. He isn't doing his for charity, but I have sponsored him by paying for his wheels," continued Perich.

``I have also seen the video of the two riders who, with John C. Scott of IDEAS organizing their events (Perich's campaign manager) ― Vin Heney and Greg Mailloux ― did the coast-to-coast, finishing in September last year, and I've only had about two weeks. They raised $68,000 Canadian and that's before even releasing the video on DVD. Their fund-raising tour is available at http://www.rubbersidedownmovie.com"

As well as his passion for cycling, Perich counts as another plank of his motivation a close family member who suffers from Crohn's, an inflammatory disease of the intestines.

``I have a strong drive to do this," he added.

Anyone interested in finding out more about the expedition, donating to the cause or cycling groups in Korea can contact Perich at 010-2657-5126 or e-mail tesol2000@gmail.com.

bk@koreatimes.co.kr

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About the Korean-World Author

Brian Perich was an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) lecturer for a decade, father, and adventure cyclist based in South Korea.

Previously, Brian has led Canoe adventures in Quetico Provincial Park, Atikokan, Ontario, Canada (1993/1999); led Grand American camping adventures (2000); lived at Paramahansa Yogananda's SRF Ashram for 5 months (see the film "AWAKE"), formerly worked in titanium welding at Agilent Technologies, formerly worked in Winery industry in Marin County with Kendall Jackson in California; Surfing and Meditation continued for several years in California, British Columbia, South Korea, Yoga training in California 1999-2000.

Between 1994-1998 - Brian completed his own adventures with motorcycles. His motorcycling marathons took him across the United States and central/western Canada, while traveling solo over an astounding 24,000km in 60 days! Brian endured 900 mile/1300km average days in the motorcycle saddle and apparently loved every minute of those adventures.

Today, he has given up motorcycle adventures altogether, but finds an outlet for his enthusiasm in outdoor recreation while bicycle touring and micro-blogging about those experiences on his mountain bikes.

While employed as an English teacher in South Korea, Brian has became an advocate for bicycle touring on his mountain bikes. The Korean-World blog originated from those small adventures in Korea, now expanded to cover his recent trek down the TransMongolian highway to the Gobi Desert, cycling 900km east through the Khentii grasslands and in 2012 crossing Mongolia in 45 days, 2500 kilometers 1553 miles. HimalayasX expedition Brian previously cycled across western China, the Taklamakan Desert, the northern Himalayas of East Turkestan Xinjiang/Uyghur Autonomous Region, the corrugated back roads and mountains of Kham Tibet. Brian successfully completed his 2011 mountain bike expedition with 3200 kilometers / 1988 miles unsupported, on/off road MTB adventure cycling.
Brian has completed his second mountain bike journey, MongoliaX expedition - Crossing Mongolia 2012, an unsupported mountain bike MTB expedition across 2500km of Outer Mongolia from Ulanbaatar to Altai Taven-Bogd National Park bordering China, Russia and Mongolia.


In 2013, as a sequel to a trilogy of cycle tours, Brian enjoyed a more leisure bicycle tour onboard his Koga-Miyata World Traveller seeing the northern tier of the United States and western Canada covering 3400 kilometers / 2000 miles in 30 days. This North American cycle tour was called Totherocktour. Enjoying the adventure of bicycle travel and every great conversation started while traveling on the road - has refueled his inspirations to cycle around the Earth. In 2013, while he cycled solo from the Great Lake State of Michigan, United States to Banff National Park in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. He weaved through local communities and reconnected with friends, family and community after spending almost a decade in Asia.


Brian is now supporting several non-profit foundations through expeditions: IDEAS Foundation of Canada IDEAS is the acronym for Intestinal Disease Education and Awareness Society which supports the IBD community, those suffering from IBD-inflammatory bowel disease, also known as Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis.


The second non-profit foundation is ETE.ORG - Education Through Expeditions, UK which supports educational outreach programs inside schools around the world. ETE connects explorers with students in the classroom, through an interactive online program in development (Beta).


Brian is researching support for a 18000 kilometer bicycle expedition across the Americas: North, Central and South America - ONE -Arctic to Argentina
Please contact him if you are interested in helping out.

Twitter: Cycleagain
Location: Gangneung, Gangwon-do, South Korea or southern Ontario, Canada.

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Brian's friends have also been...Cycling in Korea!

Brian's friends have also been...Cycling in Korea!

Cycling in Korea, Warning: always wear a helmet! (I gave mine to my friend)

Cycling in Korea, Warning: always wear a helmet! (I gave mine to my friend)

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