Finisterre has a world record breaker
Finisterre product tester, James Bowthorpe has smashed the round the world cycle record by three weeks.
Bowthorpe circumnavigated the world, covering 18,062 miles in 175 days, averaging around 103 miles per day. The 31 year old from South London cycled into Hyde Park, where he left off five and half months before, receiving a hero’s welcome. The aim of the trip was to raise £1.8 million pounds for research into Parkinson’s disease, an issue close to James’s heart.
James explains his reasoning behind the trip and his interest in research into Parkinson’s disease. “It has gotten by on a shoestring budget for several years. I decided last year that I wanted to help by taking on the hardest challenge I could find. The world record for fastest circumnavigation of the globe had just been broken, with many saying the new record was ‘unbreakable’. I decided that this would be the thing to do to raise 1.8million GBP”
Finisterre travelled to London to welcome back James and celebrate along with his friends and family. Finisterre was approached by James in the beginning of the year and the small crew of six were stoked to get him on board the exclusive Product Tester Program. They provided James with a selection of gear, including their superfine merino base layers and the classic Etobicoke, which in turn helped him cycle through some of harshest terrain the world has to offer, including jungle, deserts and mountains. It wasn’t just the physical environment that Bowthorpe had to face; he was nearly kidnapped in Iran after being followed by three cars during the ‘worst half hour of his life’ and suffered a terrible bout of food poisoning in India, which left him laid up for days.
Ernie Capbert, Marketing director was overwhelmed to hear James made the record. “To think that a company of six was able to support and aid what is now a world record, is something I never imagined, Our main focus now is to help James raise funds for Parkinson’s Disease Research”. Debbie Luffman, Product designer at Finisterre who travelled up to meet James alongside the rest of the Finisterre team remarked, “We’re honoured that James rode round the world in our product, we knew from the start when we first spoke to James, this was a very special challenge, it was great to help in a small way.”
Finisterre is looking forward to hearing what James will get up to next, and fully back his aim to raise more money towards researching Parkinson Disease. Check out his website, and donate money towards his great cause below.
http://www.globecycle.org
http://www.justgiving.com/globecycle/
