Hamster man is pedaling for charity from Wales to Ireland

Sep 27, 2012 11:38 GMT  ·  By

Chris Todd is a 35-year-old British engineer that plans to cross the Irish Sea on a human hamster wheel raft. The big Irish Sea Crossing, as the man is dubbing it, will be performed in order to raise money for charity.

Funds gathered after this incredible feat will go to the Wiltshire Blind Association and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, irishseacrossing.co.uk informs. On his website, Todd announces he plans on raising  £10,000 ($16,000) for each of the two charities he represents.

For the Wiltshire Blind Association, this fund will allow them to help 10 people in need of assistance with coping with sight loss, Todd says. As for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, they will be able to buy 10 crew members their safety equipment.

The “hamster man” was initially planning on Crossing the English Channel, but turned to the Irish after finding out that costs and regulations made it impossible for him to make his way to France on his wheel.

He is now set to cross from Wales to Ireland, in what will be a grueling 66 miles (106 km) non-stop journey. He will be accompanied by a safety boat, not just because he might collapse from exhaustion. The boat will be equipped with safety flares, as he will be crossing shipping lanes that register high traffic.

He built the giant contraption with his wife, in their Bromham home, in the English county of Wiltshire. The device took a year to build, and will solely be operated by means of pedaling, Hufington Post informs.

Todd estimates that the journey will take 40 to 48 hours, in which time he will have lost 36,000 Calories, the equivalent of going to the gym, every day, for 3 weeks, or running 10 marathons back-to-back. In order to keep his strength and energy levels up, he will drink 30 liters of water and eat 60 chocolate bars.

There might be a Guinness record title waiting for Todd, the daredevil that has already run 6 marathons in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia and trekked through the Arctic, all in the name of charity.