Young adventurers conquer North Island and move south

17 December 2012

Young adventurers conquer North Island and move south in support of The Sir Peter Blake Trust

WHAT: Two young adventurers cycling length of New Zealand and raising funds for The Sir Peter Blake Trust
WHEN: 28 November 2012 – 13 January 2013
WHERE: Cape Reinga to Bluff (see itinerary below)

Shaya Laughlin (17) from Cairns, Australia and Jeremy Basset (19) from Geneva, Switzerland have seen more of the North Island than many Kiwis – 1127km of it to be exact.

The adventurous pair is in the middle of a cycle journey taking them from Cape Reinga to Bluff, and this week they cross the Cook Strait to begin the South Island leg.

The ambitious 2257km journey of endurance and friendship, dubbed the “North2South Expedition”, began at Cape Reinga on 28 November and will finish in Bluff on 13 January.

Shaya and Jeremy came up with the idea and chose two deserving charities either side of the Tasman to benefit from it; The Sir Peter Blake Trust in New Zealand and Save Our Sea Turtles in Cairns, Australia.

Their daily blog is used to share their experiences via social media, with the aim of inspiring other young people to take positive social and environmental action while following their dreams. Posts so far show they’ve been cycling hard, tolerating the patchy weather and been blown away by the scenery.

The pair chose the Trust as a beneficiary after hearing about Sir Peter Blake while taking part in an expedition in the Amazon as part of Mike Horn’s Young Explorer Program, which encourages young people to learn about, act on, and make a difference to the planet.
Shaya says the Trust is an amazing initiative the pair is honoured to support. “Sir Peter Blake is someone we admire immensely and we have always wanted to go to New Zealand, so as soon as there was an opportunity to mix everything we love – adventure, environment and cycling – we jumped at the challenge.”

Sir Peter Blake Trust Chief Executive Shelley Campbell says Shaya and Jeremy’s adventure is a true reflection of Sir Peter Blake’s attitude to restarting people caring for the environment as it must be cared for. “Sir Peter was all for achieving this through adventure, participation, education and enjoyment and this expedition embodies that.”

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