Sponsoring my #BikingForFuture?

Hi,

I am ashamed about writing this and it was a hard decision for me to use this way, but I tried the most to make my #BikingForFuture coming true. If you have not read before, what I want to do, here comes my explanation: As a #GrandmaForFuture I wish to attend the COP26 in Glasgow in November this year. I know, that I won’t be welcomed in, but I will stand outside with flyers for the world leaders and I really hope, they will understand, that a 70-year-old grandma, coming by bike all the way from Sweden, is serious and worth to listen to. The trip is even my goal for awareness of the now and future climate situation. I also hope, I will get some help from the press to make my voice heard.

My heart burns for a more sustainable world, a good world for our children, grandchildren and future generations. I try to live that way everyday – even I also am just a human being and make mistakes sometimes. Since September 2019 I stand most of the Fridays in front of our town hall with my sign and ask the responsable community leaders for „No more empty promises“. I have a 75-year-old girlfriend, who often is my company – with her own sign: „Act now“. In the beginning of the now pandemic, I was demonstrating online. Unfortunately no younger people join us in our town, but on global actions of „FridaysForFuture“ at another place of town.

I write this, because my now bicycle had a break down. It might be possible to repair it, but it won’t be reliable. Before the break down I cycled 40 km on a very hilly road and I got tired, but I plan to do almost 60 km on mostly hilly roads every day during September to December this year. Therefore I was thinking about to buy an e-bike instead. Anyway it is much more sustainable than a car and in my age, I think, it is a good decision also showing the world, that people in my age still can make such long, sustainable trips.

Though I surfed the Internet and read about different kinds of e-bikes and fastened for the one, which was best in test. It is a Swedish one and for me locally produced or almost produced in my own country is importand as well as the possibility to ride that bike, even the battery is low or empty. This bike has the engine in the middle of the bike, which makes it easy to ride, even if it is out off battery. The bike was not able to get online, but the answer was, that my local bike shop may have one.

Yesterday, I was first walking to a shop of a chain looking for another, little cheaper e-bike, but that was not suitable for my needs and also, it would be nearly as expensive as the one I wished, because I had to buy better tires as well. Afterwards I was walking to my local bike shop and I was lucky. They had such a bike I wish, even it comes in pink – not exactly my favorite colour. Though I asked the shop assistant if he can hold it for me until I can fix the finances. He promised, but only until next monday, 19th July 2021.

I started to try my best to get a loan. Unfortunately, only two parts of my pension are Swedish and visible in the credit information. Even I do not have any payment remarks, no bank is willing to give me a loan on top of the one I already have (for moving to my now apartment). By the way, the third part of my pension is partly coming from Germany, Ireland and Malta. When I took the opportunity to work abroad in the age of 57 after a longer time of partly unemployment in Sweden, it was for, that I did not wish to be on social benefits. All my children were grown up at that time – my daughter had just become 18 years old the month before I left for Ireland. However, this is no merit after I was coming back home to Sweden for my retirenment in the age of 65. It does not matter what it is about, it is just to my disadvantage.

Finally: I ask the community to help me to finance that bike. It will only be a loan. I will pay back all the money I will get and I really will hold track of it, even of the smallast amount. You can contact me by email for my account number: dorotheeinternational@gmail.com

Here is the thought route for the event:

Datum	Route	WS	CS	km	Anm.
September
1	Katrineholm – Norrköping	X	X	50
2	Norrköping – Linköping	X	X	45
3	Linköping – Sommen / Tranås	–	–	60	WS in Tranås
4	Sommen / Tranås – Aneby	–	x	45
5	Aneby – Vaggeryd	X	x	70
6	Vaggeryd – Värnamo	X	X	80
7	Värnamo – Ljungby	X	X	80
8	Ljungby – Örkelljunga	–	X	80
9	Örkelljunga – Helsingborg	X	X	55
10	Helsingborg – Helsingör, DK				ForSea Ferry (electric)
	Helsingör – Köge (Guldkusten = Strandvejen, gamla Strandvejen…)	x	X	80
11	Köge – Vordingborg	x	X	60
12	Vordingborg – Rödbyhavn	—	x	60
13	Rödbyhavn – Puttgarden, DE				Ferry
	Puttgarden – Oldenburg in Holstein	–	–	40	WS in Kellenhusen
14	Oldenburg in Holstein – Kiel	x	x	60	Marli’s
15	Day off
16	Kiel – Hamburg	X	X	90	Michael’s
17	Day off
18	Hamburg – Wedel – Stade or Bremervörde	x	x	45
19	Stade or Bremervörde – Osterholz-Scharmbeck	—	X	70
20	Osterholz-Scharmbeck – Bad Zwischenahn	x	X	67
21	Bad Zwischenahn – Winschoten, NL	X	X	80
22	Winschoten – Groningen	X	X	40
23	Day off
24	Groningen – Zwolle	X	X	100	Global FfF
25	Zwolle – Amsterdam	X	X	100
26	Amsterdam – Den Haag	x	X	60	Maybe all the way to Rotterdam
27	Den Haag – Rotterdam	x	X	25
28	Rotterdam – Middelburg	x	X	100
29	Middelburg – Brugge / Bruges, BE	x	X	50
30	Day off	x	X
Oktober
1	Brugge – Dunkerque, FR	x	X	70
2	Dunkerque – Calais-Coquelles – Folkestone	x	X	50	Eurotunnel
3	Folkestone – Maidstone	x	X	65
4	Maidstone – Battlesbridge	—	–	65	WS + CS i Rayleigh
5	Battlesbridge – Sudbury	?	x	65
6	Sudbury – Cambridge	?	X	60
7	Cambridge – Peterborough	x	x	60
8	Peterborough – Boston	—	X	60
9	Boston – Lincoln	x	x	60
10	Lincoln – Gainsborough – Doncaster	x	x	70
11	Doncaster – Leeds	?	x	55	Tulio M. = CS
12	Leeds – Boroughbridge	—	x	50	WS in Knaresborough + Harrogate
13	Boroughbridge – Middlesbrough	x	x	80	WS fav
14	Middlesbrough – Newcastle-upon-Tyne	x	x	75	WS fav
15	Newcastle-upon-Tyne – Craster	–	–	70	WS fav + CS i Alnwick
16	Craster – Eyemouth	–	—	80	WS fav in Kelso-Waukford, CS i Coldingham
17	Eyemouth – Edinburgh	x	X	80	WS fav
18	Edingburgh				? Maybe directly to Glasgow
19	Edinburgh – Glasgow	X	X	80	Goal – Hosts already OK!
	COP26 1st – 14th November 2021
	SEC Center, Exhibition Way, Glasgow G3 8YW, UK				STANDING OUTSIDE!
	ON MY WAY HOME
November
15	Glasgow – Kirmuirhill	–	–	40	WS i Rigside, CS i Lanark
16	Kirmuirhill – Lockerbie	x	x	80	CS i Dumfries
17	Lockerbie – Calthwaite	–	–	65	CS i Penrith
18	Calthwaite – Kendal	x	X	70	WS fav
19	Day off
20	Kendal – Lancaster	x	x	40
20	Lancaster – Blackburn	x	x	55
21	Blackburn – Manchester	X	X	55
22	Day off
23	Manchester – Liverpool	X	X	60
24	Day off
25	Liverpool – Stoke-on-Trent	x	x	90
26	Stoke-on-Trent – Birmingham	X	X	80	WS fav
27	Birmingham – Stratford-on-Avon	—	x	55
28	Stratford-on-Avon – Oxford	X	X	77	WS fav
29	Day off
30	Oxford – London	X	X	100	???
December
1	London – Chelmsford	x		78
2	Chelmsford – Colchester	x		48
3	Colchester – Harwich			33
	Harwich – Hook van Holland	X			Ferry (night) – WS fav
4	Hook van Holland – Amsterdam	X		80
5	Amsterdam – Kampen	x		90
6	Kampen – Zwolle – Nieuw-Schoonebeek	—		90	WS i Coevorden
7	Nieuw-Schoonebeek – Cloppenburg, DE	x		86
8	Cloppenburg – Bremen	x		65
9	Bremen – Lilienthal – Worpswede – Gnarrenburg (Spreckenseer Landschaft) – Bremervörde	—		60	WS i Stade, CS i Buxtehude
10	Bremervörde – Hamburg	X	X	75	Stay with friends
11	Day off
12	Hamburg – Bad Segeberg	x		55
13	Bad Segeberg – Heiligenhafen	—		79	WS i Kellenhusen
14	Heiligenhafen – Puttgarden			30
	Fähre Puttgarden – Rödby, DK
15	Rödby – Vordingborg	x	X	60
16	Vordingborg – Ringsted	?	x	67
17	Ringsted – Köge	x	x	56
18	Köge – Örestad – Malmö, SWE	X	X	38	Train, Daniel
19	Day off
20	Malmö – Lund – Hörby	x	x	60
21	Hörby – Hässleholm	x	x	40
22	Hässleholm – Osby – Älmhult	?	x	60
23	Day off
24	Älmhult – Alvesta	—	x	55
25	Alvesta – Växjö – Lessebo	—	—	60 / 73
26	Lessebo – Nybro	—	X	50
27	Nybro – Kalmar	—	x	40
28	Kalmar – Mönsterås	—	x	50
29	Mönsterås – Oskarshamn	—	x	50
30	Oskarshamn – Västervik	x	x	60
31	Västervik – Valdemarsvik	—	x	70
January	2022
01	Valdemarsvik – Norrköping	x	X	65
02	Norrköping – Katrineholm	HO	ME	70
	Home!

Explanations:

WS = www.warmshowers.org – this is only a possibility, not much planned yet

CS = www.couchsurfing.com – this is only a possibility, not much planned yet

The unused days between arriving to Glasgow and start of COP26 are in case of a quarantine is needed. In that case, the part in England will be postponed some days.

There are more days off after COP26 because of the expected weather.