321 Cyclo

We are family

If you work for KOTO you become accustomed to making your excuses and leaving the room.

The problem? 

Well it’s the lump in the throat, the tears welling in your eyes, the quivering corners of your mouth. In short, it’s a very emotional place to work.

Alongside the teaching of vocational skills for formerly disadvantaged or street youth, we also teach life skills.   But it’s more than just that.  The ethos of family runs throughout everything.  We support each other.

The money Marty and Adam aim to make when they set off on their cyclo tour will help sponsor trainees at KOTO.  Each sponsored trainee will receive a home, an allowance and all the support and teaching they need to become proficient front of house workers or chefs.  In short, their 18-month program will leave them with the ability to build a career in the hospitality industry. 

Real skills, real jobs, real prospects.

For 18 months of sponsorship, a life is changed forever.  I struggle to think of a better investment. Please, if you sponsor Marty and Adam then the money will go to KOTO and towards helping these amazing young people. 

If you represent a business and you think you can help then contact me on [email protected].

In the meantime, i’ll try and keep the sermons and the hard sell to a minimum.  Once Marty and Adam hit the road these posts will be made up of their thoughts and pictures. Today I’ll let the KOTO kids have the final words. 

A couple of weeks back we had a consultant working with us.  He was trying to work out what makes KOTO special. What does it stand for?  What makes it work? We asked the kids what they thought.  These are a handful of their responses:

• I really belong to KOTO

• Love, compassion and protection

• I learn so much here which I have never know before

• I found here in my second home a love that I never found outside.

And there are two that floor me.  The first one takes a bit of thinking about. The second once again kicks off the lump in the throat, watering eyes, quivering mouth etc:

• A centre that makes me feel like an ordinary person

• KOTO is the happiest home of my life.

Cheers

Steve

Vietnam goes cyclo crazy

No doubting the star of the Extreme Charity show so far.

Neither Marty nor Adam can match the pulling power of their three-wheeled friend. Currently on show at Hanoi hang-out Bar Barracuda it's proving to be a big hit with the punters.  The picture taken last night depicts the frenzied attention it's getting.   

While Marty and Adam are maintaining a low profile the cyclo will soon need its own agent.

As the Extreme Charity cyclo's fame spreads we're open to any offers as long as they are backed by cold hard cash.  Do you want to cycle it?  Do you wanted to transported by it?  Do you want your name on it?  Do you just want to give it a great big hug?

Meanwhile, I found out last night that Adam and Marty are hatching a dastardly plan.  It seems they are hoping that the cyclo's fame will spread through Vietnam and they'll be flooded with requests from people willing to cycle it with the pair of them riding in the front.

Fair enough if you're out there and that's your thing. But...

if you want to pay well over the odds for them to pedal you around - I don't see how we could turn down the cash. And then you can say you've ridden in the Extreme Charity cyclo and be the envy of all your friends.

By the way I think it's time the cyclo had a name.  Anybody got any ideas?

Cheers

Steve

Doin' it for the kids

Just back from a quick meeting with Adam.

Something he said made me laugh.  We were talking about sponsorship, the website, the paperwork etc etc etc.

He told me he'd had a similar chat with Marty the night before.  Marty had silenced him with a look and said:

"Right now I don't care about any of that - I'm just wondering how the hell we're going to get a cyclo all the way from Hanoi To Saigon"

It seems the pressure is beginning to take its toll.  Only 40 days to go boys and don't worry everyone else - there will be NO backing out now.

Bookmark us and keep checking back.  This is going to be fun.

Cheers

Steve

Cyclo...SOLD!.. to the Extreme Charity Boys

News reaches me from our Extreme Charity heroes that the cyclo has been purchased. Good to know that even if everything goes wrong they at least have a source of income for the future.

 Check out the new vehicle in the picture above - a pic that's fresh from their latest photo shoot on the streets of Hanoi.   The boys are becoming quite the media stars in Australia, look out for them in the Sunday Herald Sun this weekend. And let us know if you spot them anywhere else too.

Anyway, as I said, we were emailed today to say the cyclo has been bought. I’m slightly concerned that Adam (he’s the one pedalling) might have had too much sun.

This could possibly be due to too much training in this 35 degree heat, but more likely from too much time spent on the open air terrace at Bar Barracuda.

 Anyway, his note reads:

 I know you are all jealous, however Marty and I are now the proud owners of a 2cc 3.2 liters V 6 middle engine with 93 mm bore, 78 mm stroke, 10.5 compression ratio, double overhead cam and one pedal per wheel 936A0000 Cyclo.

We have decided on the following optional extra's for our short 1700km journey south;

• Multi-point injection fuel system

• Manual 2-speed transmission with pedal lever on floor C 530.6

• 3 wheel-wheel drive

• Seating: two seats (however can accommodate families of 8 and more)

• Luxury trim leather on seat knob, stainless steel pedal lever, chrome look on centre floor      console, leather on front passenger and drivers seat, alloy look on dashboard and newly stained carpet in passenger foot rest.

• Air conditioning with climate control 1 climate control zone, (only available at 23 pedal revolutions per/min)

• Vehicle speed proportional power steering

• single-wheel ABS

• Electronic traction control via ABS & pedal management system

• Audio system with AM/FM and CD walkman (headset included)

• 2 speaker(s) via headset

• Tachometer

• Gloss paint (various colours to chose from)

• Electric soft top convertible roof

• 70 litre, 18.5 gallon main fuel tank for premium unleaded Tiger

• Performance: maximum speed (mph): 15 (wind assisted), maximum speed (km/h): about      30 and acceleration 0-100 km/h (secs): between 23 - 31 mins downhill

• Remote power padlock and chain

RRP - POA (But its worth millions, MILLIONS I say!)

And no you can't ride it !!!!!!

How it began...

In just under two months Marty and Adam will set off on their 1,700 k journey from Hanoi to
Saigon.

As anybody who has travelled overland in Vietnam will tell you, it’s no easy task at the best of times. Marty and Adam are doing it the hard way –  by cyclo.

 Yes, before you ask, it was an idea that came to them in the pub. However, unlike most pub-born ideas it beat the sobriety test and is still with us.

To introduce myself, my name is Steve, I am the fundraiser at KOTO – a hospitality training programme for street and disadvantaged youth.

We run a restaurant in Hanoi (61 Van Mieu – soon to move to 57 Cua Nam) – the money spent at the restaurant goes back into the program.  The restaurant is also the place where the trainees learn their roles in kitchen and front of house.

So far over 100 students have graduated from this program and we have found all of them jobs. If you ever stay at one of the top local hotels or eat at a fine restaurant in Hanoi the chances are you will be fed and served by a KOTO graduate. A graduate who is building a career away from the stresses and dangers of the streets.

KOTO is a family. We look after each other here. What we achieve is amazing and, as anyone who has ever eaten at our restaurant will tell you, it’s a place that believes in fun and smiles alongside the hard work.

Marty and Adam are good friends of KOTOs and they came to us with their cyclo idea. We loved it and are providing our support in marketing the idea – not least the setting up and updating of this website.

If you’re reading this from abroad and have never visited Vietnam then I would urge you to.  I know Marty and Adam well enough to understand that they love living and working in Vietnam.

But then most ex-pats, myself included, do get misty-eyed about this country.

There is no where quite like it in the world. Marty and Adam, will get to see it all on their trip. From the hottest of tourist hotspots to the smallest country villages. Expect them to eat everything from dogs to snakes and I’ll be here to pick up their daily emails and pictures and upload them for you.

If you would like to sponsor the pair, or if you can support them or KOTO in anyway, please get in touch. In the meantime, you can first follow the preparations and then the journey itself.

 To our knowledge no one has ever tried anything like this before. It’s simple: Three Wheels, Two Guys, One Country. It’ll be a trip of a lifetime.

We hope you enjoy the ride.

Steve