Berlin or bust – Galway student’s global challenge!

Galway native Jack Kane is preparing to make a break for Berlin – and is ready to beg, borrow or steal to get there.

The 19-year-old Renvyle man is one of 200 Dublin City University students taking part in a unique challenge where 100 teams of two attempt to travel to Berlin without using their own cash.

Jack, a past pupil of Clifden Community School, and partner Michael Malone from Kildare, are taking part in the challenge in order to raise funds for Movember Ireland and the Irish Cancer Society.

The event called “Beg, Borrow, Steal: Berlin Breakout” is run by Esoc, the enterprise society in DCU.

The duo must make their way to Berlin, without using any of their own money and on a budget of €0.00, via two checkpoints which will only be revealed on the day of the challenge, November 18.

“The idea is you have to get from point A to point B without using any of your own money,” explains Jack, a former Renvyle GAA footballer.

“The first year they did it, they went from Dublin to Cork via Carlow. The second year they had to get to Nelson’s Pillar in London, then to Newcastle and from there to Edinburgh. This year the destination is Berlin. There will be two checkpoints that you must reach before the ultimate destination and you can get there by any means possible once we do not use any of our own money.”

Jack says the rules don’t allow for bartering, or any exchange of services but the participants can hitch or get favours off transport companies or taxis in return for publicity on social media.

“It’s to encourage us to be innovative, enterprising and to think on our feet,” said Jack.

See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune.