CALM's cycling heroes - could do with more sideburns

Cyclist Bradley Wiggins has had quite a month, winning the Tour de France, gold for Britain and the honour of ringing the Opening Ceremony bell, but here at CALM we have some pedal power heroes of our own: Mike, Tom, Calvin and the other Tom.

The fab four are in final preparations for an astounding two wheel trip from London to Istanbul. We checked Wikipedia and we’re pretty certain Istanbul’s in Asia, just about.

On top of the long days, saddle sore and inevitable chaffing, the boys are trying to raise an incredible £10,000 for CALM.

“We felt it was high time for some adventure,” says Mike “Perhaps it’s the first few years out of University and into work, and the need to remind ourselves that there is still a big world out there, and that it can be just as real, regular and ‘on our doorstep’ as the daily commute!” although he admits the trip started out as a quest to find “Europe’s tastiest Kebab”.

“CALM is the perfect charity for us because it reflects exactly what we are – four young men. We recognise the stress and pressure that young men can be under and that they might seem an unlikely group in need of support.”

Calvin, who works as a GP, has suffered from depression in the past. He says: “I didn’t know about CALM at the time, if I had known it might have saved me quite a bit of time and misery thinking I was the only person ever to feel a bit hopeless. I see a lot of people through work, who just don’t see that what they are going through is common, others have been through it and that they will come through it too.”

Remember, other side of the road in Europe guys

The boys leave London on the 14th of August, heading to Calais in France, then into Belgium, through Luxemburg and Germany, sneaking back in France, trudging back to Germany, before moving into Austria, Slovakia and Hungary, hitting Serbia, taking in Bulgaria and arriving in Turkey seven weeks after setting off.

The plan is to tackle 60 miles a day, so we hope the guys have packed a puncture kit.

We’re wishing these heroes the best of luck, why not join in and visit their Facebook and JustGiving pages?