1. When will the fundraiser take place?
2nd- 16th August 2010, this includes three days at Lake Tanganyika. All participants should aim to be in Mkushi at Forest Inn (www.forestinn-zambia.com) by Saturday 31st July.

2. How will I get there?
There are numerous travel options but our recommended routes are:

• Direct or indirect flights to Lusaka (Zambia’s capital). British Airways, Ethiopian Airways and KLM often have the best deals. It is also worth checking with STA travel. It then takes approximately 4-5 hours by bus on a good tar road to reach Mkushi (approx. £9).
• Direct or indirect flights to Johannesburg. Flight Centre often has return flights from around £350, then a connecting flight to Ndola with either South African Airways or Zambezi Airways (around £80 one way). Ndola is the Copperbelt’s only international airport, it is close to Children with Future in Zambia’s head office and a 3 hour drive away from our starting point at Mkushi.
• Flights to Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania) and Nairobi (Kenya) are often around £400 with bus or train routes into Zambia.

Overall, it depends on whether you plan to do any travelling either before or after the fundraiser and how much time/money you want to spend on flights.

3. What should I expect to pay for personal expenses?
Flights, vaccinations, anti-malarials, visa (£35 for British citizens, please check www.zambiaimmigration.gov.zm for other nationals) travel insurance, food, refreshments, bicycle (if you plan to buy in Zambia) petrol for x2 safety vehicles (approximately £40 each), transfer back from Lake Tanganyika to Lusaka (£15) donation to the group contingency fund (in case of emergency and refundable after the event ) and a contribution towards our local guide’s wage for the two weeks.

We hope to find sponsorship for accommodation and meals shall be cooked as a group to keep costs low. Total cost estimation including accomodation = £700- 1,000 but we shall be continuing to discuss at Cycle Tanganyika SOAS Expedition meetings ways of bringing this total amount down.

4. How will I fundraise the money? And how much am I expected to fundraise for the charity?
The SOAS Exped Society shall be holding fundraising events throughout the year, and hope to raise an average donation of £800 from each cyclist to Children with Future in Zambia. It can often seem daunting to imagine raising money to not only cover your personal expenses but also money for the charity. However, we shall be supporting each other as a group and truly believe that when we complete the event it will be all the more satisfying knowing what a great difference the money is going to make. £800 over a 7 month period seems far more manageable and fundraisers in the past for example, have managed to easily raise that amount in one club night. We will also be on hand to help with fundraising ideas, and providing donation forms if you also want to fundraise for your personal costs.

5. Who is eligible to take part?
All we ask if that you be over 18 and be reasonably fit to take part. You do not need to be a SOAS student or have past cycling experience. We shall be organising group training sessions to make sure we all feel ready.

NB. We estimate that to complete the trip we will need to cycle for approximately 4 hours each day.

6. Where will we be staying?
Accommodation will be a combination of lodges (when the route goes through a town) so that cyclists will have a chance to shower and relax or in shared tents. The safety vehicles will carry tents, cooking utensils and food supplies. Some of the most beautiful spots on our route are also some of the remotest, so participants must be willing to rough it a bit to see the sights that most tourists to Zambia never experience.

7. What safety practices will be in place?
Due to the distance participants are cycling we have organized for two safety vehicles to travel behind the group. These safety vehicles will carry all the equipment needed for the ride, including spares, a medical kit and a local safari guide. As in all such events there are always risks, but the team at Children with Future in Zambia and SOAS Exped Society will do all that is within their means to ensure everyone involved in the challenge returns home feeling they had a safe, well planned and meaningful experience.

8. What happens when we reach Lake Tanganyika?
You can either relax on the stunning beaches for three days or visit the surrounding attractions such as Kalombo falls or Nsumbu National Park. Transport back to Lusaka can be arranged or you may choose to part for your own destinations (for example, Lake Tanganyika is on the boarder to Tanzania). If you feel that you would like to volunteer at Children with Future in Zambia and see exactly where the money raised is going, either at one of the schools, with a women’s group, or our HIV and AIDS project this is certainly an option too! Please visit www.cwfiz.com for more details.

9. Extra questions?
Please either come along to one of our SOAS Exped meetings, join the SOAS Exped group on face book, or email us for more details:
lois.cochrane@gmail.com
copresidents.expedsoc@gmail.com
cfzambia@cwfiz.com