MOST young people who visit popular tourist destinations in Asia will have taken a ride in a motorised rickshaw - or 'tuk-tuk'.

Few, however, can claim to have travelled the length of a country in one.

But that is exactly the challenge one Oxford Brookes University student is about to embark upon.

Budding adventurer Harry Hirsch, 22, of Rectory Road, East Oxford, is planning to drive the 3,100-mile journey from Kathmandu, Nepal, to Chennai, India, in a rickety old rickshaw to raise money for a charity close to his heart.

He is doing the trip to support the Sandpiper Trust, which provides GPs and nurses in rural Scotland with emergency medical equipment for life-saving pre-hospital procedures.

The trust was set up by Harry's aunt and uncle after his cousin, Sandy Dichson, drowned during a trip to Canada in 2000.

Mr Hirsch said the provision of specialist equipment during the first hour after the accident could have saved his life.

He said: "Sandy was swimming under water in a lake and I think his heart just couldn't take it.

"He was a long way from any help. The helicopter came, but they couldn't keep him alive because they did not have the right equipment."

Mr Hirsch, along with his best friend Ed Eggins, 21, is hoping to raise thousands for the charity.

The dynamic duo are one of 40 teams tackling The Rickshaw Run, organised by The Adventurists.

The adventure itself is expected to take three weeks, with competitors setting off on June 1.

Mr Hirsch said: "We make our own route. It's as simple as that.

"It starts in Nepal, so it's pretty mountainous to begin with. Then it's going to be pretty tropical. We will get a lot of rain.

"If we break down, we ask the locals very politely if they know how to fix a tuk-tuk.

"I think we will be able to cope. I might be the only person in the world who trusts Ed - but we are pretty capable."

The friends will pack a tent in the back of the seven horsepower tuk-tuk, which has a top speed of 34mph - downhill.