Previous challenges
Take a look at some of Gordon's previous challenges.
The 'Buy Benaiah' Campaign
In 2015, Freedom Challenge Trust set out to raise £525,000 to purchase a building to house vulnerable women and to help them in their recovery journey from drug and alcohol addiction.
Gordon Cruden set out on 5 challenges to raise the funds, and by 2018, we reached our target of £525,000 to buy Benaiah where women and children find love, warmth and recovery. So many people did their own challenges to help us with the purchase - amazing time. Thank you.
Read more below.
Euro Bike Challenge
Gordon travelled across 47 Countries solo on a motorbike, covering 13,500 miles in April 2015.
He was held at gun point at the Ukraine-Moldova border, interrogated and mistaken for a Russian biker who was coming to cause unrest. After five attempts, two days and with the help of Ukrainian friends Gordon was able to cross the border and continue to complete challenge 3 hours from the 30 day timeframe.
We raised approximately £160,000.
Hungry and Homeless Challenge
Gordon took nothing for this challenge other than his diabetic meds, phone and charger. He went homeless in London, Cardiff, Dublin, Belfast, Edinburgh and Aberdeen for 30 days total.
This challenge was most popular as he blogged on Facebook stories from the people he met whilst on the streets. He got a real picture of what was really happening with our homeless on these city streets.
Gordon says sleep deprivation wore him out to the point he felt so emotional to the point he cried at times for no reason. The kindness he experienced and saw as communities reached out and helped vulnerable people changed him.
We raised approximately £90,000.
American Bike Challenge
Gordon travelled across 50 States solo on a motorbike, covering 13,500 miles (coincidentally the same miles as the Euro bike challenge).
He set off from Michigan and finished in Illinois. Rode through Canada to hit Alaska and flew from LA to hit Hawaii.
People said you must have seen lots of cool stuff? He didn’t, he saw Highways, Gas (petrol) Stations and Motels. He says he experienced rain and wind like he's never seen. And ate more fried chicken than the Colonel.
His adrenaline was at a level I rarely slept more than four hours a night.
He got to Illinois border 28 days and raised approximately £80,000.
People's Crosswalk Challenge
This was Gordon's favourite challenge, walking 600 miles round Scotland with a 16 foot cross on our back.
Gordon knew this was a challenge he could not do solo - he just wasn’t fit or strong enough, he would need help. Every day someone showed up to help him carry that cross, mostly people he knew, but some he had never met or knew.
For him personally, in trying to help vulnerable, he knew the message of the Cross, that Jesus died for us, for our sins, rose again that we might rise to eternal life with him, was central to what he has tried to communicate to people around the world and here was a dramatisation of just that.
Around 200 people helped carry that cross 30 days around Scotland and raise approximately £70,000.
Australian Bike Challenge
A circumnavigation of Australia all states and territories, 10,000 miles solo on a motorbike in 30 days.
The sheer vastness of this land made Gordon feel very small. He had to plan meticulously because servos (petrol stations) were spread out.
The heat on the west coast was 47c, and he recalls stopping at a lay-by looking for water, there was none. He had become disoriented with his blood sugars very low due to diabetes - he felt prompted to lay on the ground and said to himself 'its time to die Gordon'. He says it was a strange but calm feeling. As he was about to kneel, his mind stirred with the thought of why he was doing this challenge - to buy a home for women and children who were recovering from addiction - so he jumped up, rode the bike 100kms to a servo for sugar. He had survived to ride another day.
He made it back to Sydney where he had set off, completing another challenge and raised approximately £50,000.
Other Challenges
Being Strong Challenge
Freedom Challenge Trust kitted out a van with bed, fridge and microwave - Gordon's challenge? To travel to every David Lloyds gyms in UK 98 at the time excluding Northern Ireland and do a one hour workout in everyone in 30 days, starting and finishing at his home gym.
Gordon thought this was an audacious challenge and he wasn’t sure if he could pull it off. He states he's very stubborn so it would take an injury to stop him. He was amazed at how his body adapted to the 4 workouts a day, the traveling between them, the sleeping and eating in the van.
Faith in Jesus is a big part of Gordon's life and he knew He was able to make him strong. But he knew he had to be strong to show people you can change your life around with faith in Jesus and looking after your body with proper exercise and diet.
He completed this challenge in 27 days to Gordon's amazement, he had reversed his diabetes (sadly, he had to restart insulin due to being unable to continue exercising 4-5 hours a day).
Suicide was and is on the rise with people losing the battle of the mind. Gordon received many personal messages of people starting their own personal recovery from mental, physical, emotional and spiritual battles entering into a new lease of life free from suicide ideation.
Charity No: SCO33414