Benjamin and Edmund are both 23 years old but one grew up in Belfast and the other in South West England.  Together they have formed the blog Furious Green Ideas, a blog that speaks about cycling, language, environment travelling, food and drink. “You can write that it’s about all the things we care about, and the title is a reference to Noam Chomsky for his work in linguistics and activism and environmentalism” adds Benjamin.  oh, and another reason for the name of the blog - we chose something general because in the long run we don't just want it to be about cycle touring but about other environmental actions that will get people talking. That's why the London - Istanbul cycle is just Furious Green Idea no. 1.  Together they are now planning to cycle from London to Istanbul in august.

When being asked what their motivation is for going on such a long trip Ben says “ We had both been on 'quite' long cycling trips before - Ed cycled the length of the UK and I had gone from Paris to the south of France. I guess we both just have the bug and are looking for a bigger challenge.”

All the way to Istanbul on bikes that ‘shouldn’t cost more than fifty quid’.

 “Maybe I'm quite naïve but I don't have many fears for the trip. I've already had my bike stolen in Brussels though so I'm going to be more careful in that regard - I'm going to ride an old, not too flashy, steel-framed bike and use two big locks wherever I leave it. There are also some worries when buying expensive equipment that it won't be up to scratch - your sleeping bag won't be warm enough, your panniers not waterproof enough, and so on. But after a while you just have to make a decision and hope it works out. It's only our second trip so there's a lot still to learn.”

16 countries and 8 capitals

In terms of the new countries we'll be visiting, I find that really exciting - I've never been anywhere in the Balkans or Turkey before and know really very little about the culture and the people, so there's a lot to discover.

We both speak English and French, and can order a beer in Polish (!) - that's about enough to get us through the first week! This is a difficult one - as native English speakers we are rather lucky but we don't like to presume people will speak English everywhere we go. At the very least I always learn a few basic phrases - I think it's a mark of respect even if your pronunciation is terrible!

On our way to Istanbul we'll pass through 16 countries and 8 capital cities. Following the EuroVelo routes also gives us a bit of a theme - the route 5 through London, Brussels, Luxembourg and Basel is an old pilgrim trail to Rome with a lot of history. We'll then follow the river Danube (route 6) for over 2000km and through some of Europe's most beautiful capitals. It'll be really interesting to see how the local culture changes as we move along, with the river as the one constant. The final part will be the most challenging and interesting in my opinion, as we trace the route of the iron curtain between the former Yugoslavian and Eastern Bloc countries.

Equipment and preparations

We want to travel as light as possible and our current plan is to carry just two rear panniers each. We won't have a tent but just a bivouac bag for emergency camping. Whenever we can we will try to stay with local friends or with hosts from the 'warmshowers' community, a website where touring cyclists who are not on the move can offer a bed to those passing through their town.

I cycle to work and around town every day, and sometimes do short rides in the countryside at the weekend. I think it's important to train a little bit to avoid injuries, but as long as we build up slowly most of it can be done 'on the road'.

When I ask him if he is flashy fit lycra guy, Ben laughs. ‘I’ve had a few too many Belgian beers in the last year! Meanwhile Ed successfully completed a triathlon in England last week, so I think there might be a bit of an imbalance in our team at the start.That's the beautiful thing - if you aren't fit at the start, you certainly will be by the end.’

EuroVelo

I think EuroVelo is a fantastic project and I've been wanting to do a full tour on the routes ever since I discovered my first signpost on the way through France a couple of years ago. Since then the information available has got a lot better and we feel pretty well prepared for this trip, even if there are still some unsigned sections. The ECF also kindly provided us with planning maps, and we've been using the new eurovelo.com website a lot, Hopefully this trip and our blog will get even more people excited and involved, and get them thinking about whether they really need a car for their holidays, or at all!

So check out their blog at http://furiousgreenideas.com

And follow the two guys on twitter as they make their way through Europe to the black sea! @furiouslygreen

About the Author

Anette Christiansen works as communications Assistant at the European Cyclists’ Federation. She holds a Masters-degree in European Tourism Management (EMTM) and is specialized in Cycling Tourism.