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“Refugees Welcome” – two cyclists are creating the world’s biggest piece of GPS art in charity ride across southern England

Georgie Cottle and David Charles are spelling out their message on 2,400km ride

A pair of cyclists are creating what will be the world’s biggest ever piece of GPS art, spelling out the words “Refugees Welcome” across southern England.

Georgie Cottle, aged 26 and from Glasgow, and David Charles, 39 and from Bournemouth, have already broken the Guinness World Record, which stood at 761km, on their 2,400km journey across counties mostly bordering the English Channel.

They began their journey in Cornwall and will finish it in Dover, and so far their challenge – which goes by the name Spell It Out – has raised nearly £40,000 for charity, £7,000 of that through a fundraising page on Chooselove.org.

“The situation in Afghanistan was hitting the news just as we left,” said David, quoted on Kent Online.

“It’s certainly been uppermost in everyone’s minds while we’ve been riding.

“Everyone we meet seems to be aware of the horror of what’s happening and it’s been heartening to find that most people we’ve met show great compassion towards those forced to flee their homes.”

He continued: “Wiltshire has been the most generous county so far in terms of donations.

“It’d be unfair to pick out anyone in particular, but Laura and Jon at Bulstone Springs gave us full use of their glamping facilities, and also made us a homemade tiramisu.”

They surpassed the previous record while riding across the Somerset Levels, and David said:  “The mayor bought me a cup of tea and Georgie a Guinness and regaled us with the wonderful legends of Glastonbury.”

The two cyclists belong to a cycling group called Thighs of Steel, whose co-founders Harri Symes and Oli Kasteel-Hare devised the idea of spelling out the words, with Georgie using Komoot to plan the route.

“The south of England was the obvious place to plan the ride because Dover is the port of entry for many refugees, the route sends a very direct message of compassion, and because the letters fit nicely,” David said.

“There was an awful lot to consider, both in terms of cycling and logistical constraints such as easy access to overnight accommodation and railway stations.”

He added: “It takes a lot of mental as well as physical energy to keep going day after day after day.:

“The compensations are being able to eat as much as we like and, of course, the incredibly generous donations from people back home.”

On their fundraising page, they give more details of why they decided to undertake the ride, saying: “The British government is trying to make it almost impossible for refugees to claim asylum in the UK.

“Home Secretary Priti Patel's Nationality and Borders Bill is putting the UK in direct opposition to the 1951 Geneva Convention by shutting down even more legal routes to asylum in this country. Incredibly, it will also criminalise the courageous, life-saving work of the RNLI.

“That's why we're getting back on our bikes, cycling really really far and fundraising for grassroots organisations that offer refugees the welcome that our government withholds.”

They also each outlined their own personal reasons for taking on the challenge.

“I have been a keen bean cyclist since I was 19 and found myself cycling the length of America, sort of by accident,” Georgie said.

“Since then I have explored much of Scotland, Wales and New Zealand with my trusty Raleigh Capri (called ‘Sunny’).

“I first got involved volunteering with refugee and asylum seeker communities while studying Arabic in Jordan in 2016, at the height of the crisis. I learned one heck of a lot about what it meant to be a 'refugee', what people had to give up and why people were forced to flee.

“I now work with refugee and asylum seeker communities in Glasgow and it seems that people's journeys are being made ever more difficult by governments here in the UK and in Europe.

“Spell It Out is an incredible challenge that I am so privileged to be a part of. We are both really looking forward to getting on the road, and rallying as much support as possible for Choose Love!”

David said: “I've been going on ridiculously long bike rides for ten years now, including two stints on the London to Athens relay with Thighs of Steel.

“For me, bikes are the ultimate freedom machine, carrying me across continents, powered by nothing more than a croissant (or seven). I have also seen the transformational potential of bikes when put into the hands of refugees and asylum seekers, both here in the UK and in places like Calais, Athens, Chios and Samos.

“Bikes give us both independence and community and I'm proud to use mine in solidarity with those fleeing persecution, conflict and torture.

“I've been so lucky that I've been able to travel freely around the world, thanks only to the freak chance of being born in a politically stable, wealthy country. The sheer injustice that some human beings aren't allowed to cross borders makes me furious and anger is an energy, right? I hope so, because I've got an awful lot of cycling to do!

“We are far from powerless,” he added. “Please donate generously, make a noise and show the world that refugees are always welcome here.”

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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190 comments

Avatar
chrisonabike | 3 years ago
5 likes

Lazy cyclists!  If only they'd taken the time to make it "Genuine refugees welcome (no economic migrants) subject to confirmation of (a) general eligibility for asylum (b) not having previously passed through a 'safe country' and (c) willingness to work toward cultural understanding"

...then none of this debate would have been necessary.

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efail | 3 years ago
3 likes

I've just read every comment on this topic (retired and on holiday and in a lounger in the sun). I had to scroll back to the top to remind myself what the topic was about. Don't any of you people work? Where do you find the time? 

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mdavidford replied to efail | 3 years ago
2 likes

efail wrote:

I've just read every comment on this topic (retired and on holiday and in a lounger in the sun). I had to scroll back to the top to remind myself what the topic was about. Don't any of you people work? Where do you find the time? 

Presumably once you'd reminded yourself what it was about, your question was put in to perspective...

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jaymack replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 3 years ago
4 likes

As Mr Spock never quite said 'it's compassion Nigel, but not as we know it'.

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to jaymack | 3 years ago
6 likes

I'm actually surprised that he is obviously taking the piss out of both PP and Raab there considering he normally supports the Tories. 

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Rendel Harris replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 3 years ago
7 likes

Nigel Garrage wrote:

With the fantastic Priti Patel and Dominic Raab at the wheel, both from immigrant refugee families, I'm certain they will continue to push for a compassionate and pragmatic solution for Afghanistan's refugees, backed with financial and logistical support.

Oh come now, I'll give you a free pass on the basis that it's Friday night and you've probably hoisted a few, but this is such low quality moronic trolling even by your standards. You're really getting embarrassing now.

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Sniffer replied to Rendel Harris | 3 years ago
7 likes

Even Nigel can’t possibly believe in the statement he posted.

He just wants attention. Transparent nonsense.

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markieteeee replied to Rendel Harris | 3 years ago
8 likes

Oddly, I thought this was a rare attempt at humour from Nigel.  Even supporters of Patel wouldn't suggest compassion as being among her strong points - in fact, her most fervent fans probably see the apparent absence of compassion as one of her more admirable qualities.  Ascribing bizzaro world qualities to Patel alongside the juxtaposition of Raab's name and the phrase 'at the wheel' was pure satire.  So I assumed it was a self-deprocating attempt at humour, where Nigel said the sort of ludicrous comments we expect him to make deliberately to make us laugh.  

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Rendel Harris replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
5 likes

You'd think that but this is someone who genuinely said, and confirmed it perfectly seriously a number of times, that he thought Donald Trump the greatest ever President of the USA, so...

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markieteeee replied to Rendel Harris | 3 years ago
6 likes

Well you are probably right - I suppose this comment was so ludicrous that I optimistically attributed it to a rare glimpse of self-awareness, rather than considering the worrying implications for anyone who could type it with a straight face. 

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Allen Key replied to Rendel Harris | 3 years ago
2 likes
Rendel Harris wrote:

Nigel Garrage wrote:

With the fantastic Priti Patel and Dominic Raab at the wheel, both from immigrant refugee families, I'm certain they will continue to push for a compassionate and pragmatic solution for Afghanistan's refugees, backed with financial and logistical support.

...but this is such low quality moronic trolling even by your standards. You're really getting embarrassing now.

Is Nigel Garrage a "troll" then? I have seen a few useful posts by them, like the one on avoiding the dreaded bonk.

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Rendel Harris replied to Allen Key | 3 years ago
6 likes

Big time, changed his username three times (minimum) and been banned for personal abuse. Virtually any story that involves a discussion of whether drivers or cyclists are in the wrong, particularly the Near Miss of the Day series, he leaps in on behalf of drivers. He's such a bore with his trolling that Jon Stevenson, one of this site's writers and editors, has started deleting his replies to his (JS's) comments. He has, since returning from his ban, taken to throwing in a few inoffensive "As a cyclist myself" type posts, possibly as protective camouflage. Surely the post in question here is pretty blatant trolling?

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Rich_cb replied to Rendel Harris | 3 years ago
6 likes

It's interesting that a pro-Conservative post would be "blatant trolling".

Anti-Conservative posts are routine on this forum including from road.cc staff.

Are these trolling too?

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markieteeee replied to Rich_cb | 3 years ago
4 likes

To be fair, his posts usually make patently false claims about the tories - you could argue that in doing so, they aren't necessarily pro-Conservative.  They're made to get a reaction.  This one read as pure comedy.  Surely posting false claims to get a reaction is trolling.

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Rich_cb replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
4 likes

You consider it a false claim/comedy yet, in fact, it merely differs from your opinion.

You may think that Patel, Raab et al are doing an awful job but there are some people who would disagree with you.

If posting a different opinion is 'Trolling' then we are condemning ourselves to online echo chambers.

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markieteeee replied to Rich_cb | 3 years ago
6 likes

I didn't mention whether they are doing a good job or not, nor did Nigel. He made the explicit claim that Patel would "continue to push for a compassionate and pragmatic solution". This is the opposite of her previous policies on migrants, so it's nonsensical to say she could possibly 'continue' to do so. If he'd said he hoped she would push for one or speculated that she might, it might have made some sort of sense (even if many people wouldn't share such optimism).

The part that made it comedy gold was that he included Raab as being 'at the wheel' the week after he was on holiday on the most important date of his tenure as secretary of state responsible for foreign affairs.  

Again, I didn't specifically say he was trolling here - I intially thought it was an attempt to show some humour for once. I did say that he often makes patently false claims about tories to get a reaction,  which he does. 

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Rich_cb replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
3 likes

You're relying on opinion again.

Whether something is 'compassionate' or 'pragmatic' is quite subjective.

If someone believes that Patel's previous policies have been compassionate and pragmatic then it's entirely reasonable to state that she would 'continue' in a similar vein.

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markieteeee replied to Rich_cb | 3 years ago
5 likes

You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who genuinely believes Patel's previous policies were compassionate but of course, you can defend anything by claiming it's subjective. Do you even think that Nigel believes this example or are you just defending the prinicipal of alternative facts?

Like I said, I thought this post was deliberately funny but we could go on all day with other examples where Nigel has thrown in false claims; often, but not exclusively, they are about tory politicians or policies; often, completely off-topic too. I find it very odd. If someone supports the tories, then surely you'd point to examples where you thought what they have done has been successful instead of continually making false claims on their behalf. Unless you want someone to bite, of course. 

I get that you think that all opinions are valid, but in cases where they are demonstrably false where do you draw the line?  I tend to think that anyone is free to say what they think but must accept that people will challenge what they say - you are free to say it but you don't get a free pass from being challenged.

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Rich_cb replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
4 likes

I have no idea what NG actually believes.

My gut feeling is that he uses deliberately effusive language to describe his beliefs in order to create a reaction.

There are many people who do so on this forum including staff members of road.cc. The same applies to false claims.

If we're going to take a position against such behaviour then it really has to cut both ways.

Demanding absolute truth from one end of the political spectrum whilst tolerating/encouraging exaggeration and hyperbole from the other seems a tad hypocritical.

Personally I dislike false claims and will, if I have the patience, try to refute them. I wouldn't oppose moderators removing patently false claims (this would definitely not include subjective statements) but I have no confidence that this would be done in an even-handed way given the openly stated bias of our most active moderator.

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markieteeee replied to Rich_cb | 3 years ago
3 likes

Rich_cb wrote:

 Demanding absolute truth from one end of the political spectrum whilst tolerating/encouraging exaggeration and hyperbole from the other seems a tad hypocritical.

Nothing I've said implies I do this.

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Rich_cb replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
3 likes

I didn't say you did.

Apologies if you felt that was what I was implying.

I was simply calling for an even-handed approach.

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Flintshire Boy replied to Rich_cb | 3 years ago
2 likes

'Cut both ways'? On Road.cc comments sections?

How DARE you, sir?!

 

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
6 likes

Can anyone remind me whether the Patel = Compassionate posts were made before or after she announced legislation to appease the "Let them drown" rabble after the RNLI were rescuing people from clearly unsuitable boats in the channel?

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Rich_cb replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 3 years ago
1 like

Does the current approach lead to drownings?

Yes.

Would an alternative approach reduce the drownings?

We don't know yet but if it did wouldn't that actually be 'a good thing'.

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markieteeee replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 3 years ago
4 likes

They were made after Patel announced such legislation but before she instructed Border Force and other authorities to turn boats carrying desperate people back into French waters, contrary to our international obligations and maritime law, as well as our moral duty.  

But such a sickening lack of compassion can be defended by saying that compassion is merely subjective. It's the free market of facts.

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ktache replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
0 likes

What if there are Afghans on the boats?

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markieteeee replied to ktache | 3 years ago
3 likes

I'm unsure what you mean by the question.  I don't think our authorities have been instructed to check nationalities on the boats before illegally turning them around. To me, it's irrelevant: you save anyone in our waters - having a pyramid of who is and who isn't allowed to drown or who does and doesn't have access to international laws based on nationality is immoral. 

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mdavidford replied to ktache | 3 years ago
1 like

ktache wrote:

What if there are Afghans on the boats?

Clearly the fact that they're attempting an illegal crossing shows that they're lying, and they're not really Afghans at all. If they were, they'd have got all their papers sorted out properly by visiting the British embassy before leaving Afghanistan, and then got a regular flight out of the country to the UK...

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Rich_cb replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
1 like

Given that the status quo is leading to those same desperate people drowning in the English channel.

What would your solution be?

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markieteeee replied to Rich_cb | 3 years ago
6 likes

I know you want to defend the original post out of some abstract principle and I realise we might have very different politics but thank you for at least abandoning the pretence that the status quo of Patel's policies are compassionate. I'll answer in the spirit that it was a genuine question:  you rescue anyone who is drowning or desperate in our waters, then you process them in line with international law. 

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