Student battles elements in 3,000km charity ride
By Jill Dando News
Fierce winds tried to unseat him and the sea almost swept his tent away, but nothing could stop University of Bristol student Ed Watson cycling the entire length of Norway for charity.
The Medicine student, along with his brother and friend, cycled around 100km every day for 32 days straight – all in the memory of their friend.
As they made their way from Lindesnes in the south to Nordkapp in the north, they often thought about Tom Love.
Tom grew up in their hometown of Amersham, near London, and followed his adventurous spirit to Africa. Sadly, in December 2022, he passed away while working in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He was just 21.
The team’s 3,000km journey has already raised £6,000 for The Tom Love Trust, which supports children and young people in deprived areas of the UK and Africa.
But the fundraising journey was far from plain sailing. Rain was a daily companion as they rode through Norway’s hilly terrain, inching their way to the Arctic Circle, where the nights could last mere hours.
“One night we wildcamped near a fjord,” Ed recalled. “We were woken up at 4 in the morning because the tide had come in and we were soaking wet! That’s when I knew we were going to work well together as a team, because the first thing we did was laugh.”
Ed added: “This trip is the type of thing Tom really enjoyed - being in middle of nowhere, supporting yourself. He would have loved it.”
On their donation page, Tom is described as “utterly kind and caring, funny and beautifully sociable – someone truly interested in and excited about everyone he met”.
And although the team – Ed, brother James Watson and friend Tommy Davies – faced challenges, they loved the adventure too.
They often pitched their tents amid sensational views, sometimes with the Northern Lights dancing above them.
Ed said: “Before starting the cycle, I thought the best moment would be getting to the end. But for me the best moments were being out in the middle of nowhere, looking over a beautiful fjord, not seeing anyone else and just chatting away with my mates.”
Ed is now back at the University of Bristol, where he is taking a year out of his medicine degree to study Global Health.
Last year he was the University’s men’s hockey club captain, a year in which the first team won the National Conference West. Back at training now, he claims the sessions are harder than the hours he spent each day in the saddle.
Ed said: “Out there, all you’ve got to do is get up, eat food and cycle in a straight line. So getting back to Bristol and suddenly seeing so many people in one place was a shock.
“As weird as it sounds, although I absolutely loved the cycle, I actually missed doing uni work. There were definitely days when it had been raining all day when I thought ‘I’d rather be sat in a library with my mates!’”
To donate to the friends, visit their donation page.
