A DISABLED adventurer is aiming to travel 12,000 miles across Africa in a specially adapted Land Rover.

Richard Harris, 43, and his wife, Rachel, 41, are setting off on the epic journey to give hope to others who have suffered life-changing injuries.

On November 30, 1986, Richard broke his neck playing in a friendly rugby game.

Severe spinal injuries have left him reliant on mobility aids.

He had previously played for Torquay Athletic Rugby Football Club 3rd XV, but on the fateful day he was playing in a Sunday friendly for a South Devon Tech side against Torbay Police.

There was no one else involved when he landed on the top of his head and it pushed forward as he fell 'clumsily' on the ball.

Since the accident Richard has qualified as an occupational therapist and now works for Torbay Care Trust.

However, he was so naive about neck injuries at the time of his accident that, when a paramedic asked if he was okay, he nodded his head.

"It was the last thing they wanted me to do," said Richard, sitting on the patio of his Middle Warberry Road home.

He clasps his beard, and adjusts his legs as he sits talking to me in a custom-built all terrain wheelchair that is fitted with large tyres that wouldn't be amiss on a downhill mountain bike.

His wife Rachel, who also works for the care trust, watches over us as we talk, offering tea and glasses of ice cold water and giving fresh perspectives on the reasons for the trip they hope to start in May 2011.

The trip has already required a £100,000 investment, and a loan has been taken out against their house to finance it — £80,000 has been spent commissioning a special Land Rover conversion.

The 'Azalai' camper is custom built in Kingsteignton by locally based OEC Ltd.

The 'Indlovu Drive' will ship out to Zululand in May 2011 and Richard and Rachel will be taking a career break for the estimated journey time.

The Land Rover will have a hydraulic back step to help Richard get in and out, hand-controls, and an automatic gear box custom-fitted so he can drive too.

"Because of the innovative Azalai all of the excuses for not doing the trip have gone and the only thing stopping you is you, and you realise that if you don't do it now the you have been lying to yourself, and either you do it or you don't," explains Richard.

They couple already have a distinctive black VW Transporter complete with red A-Team-style stripe which can be spotted around Torquay. But it may need to be sold to help fund the expedition.

He is very frank that advances in 'personal hygiene' have also helped allow him to undertake this daunting challenge.

Richards says: "The spinal cord injured person's world revolves around toileting, it is a protracted process and you need to be able to manage it wherever you are, even if that's the middle of the Sudan."

Rachel already knew Richard before his accident. She played hockey and they mixed in the same post-match social circles, 17 years on they are planning their journey through 10 African countries that will see them starting in South Africa at the Hluhluwe Umflozi National Park, north of Durban.

They are aiming to raise £3,000 for Bristol based charity Motivation, who are marking their 20th anniversary with their 'Wheels Out of Poverty' campaign.

The couple will also travel through Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt.

Richard, who has been visiting since 1996, says: "Every time you go back you see changes and improvements but you also see the challenges. You see something that has developed and that adds to the experience of going there. That is just South Africa, and there is a much bigger continent there."

"Because you are living with the injury, you have to accommodate it and when you are getting rehab, you always have the next little challenge; whether that is being able to sit up, loosen the collar or pick up a cup of tea.

"There is always a reward with each stage, and when you reach the point that it is real, you are back home dealing with it," says Richard. "Family and those that care for you often don't have the same, intimate comfort that those trivial personal battles and victories give to one."

He is full of praise for the rugby 'fraternity' that raised funds to help his parents adapt the house and for treating him the same despite his injury.

"It was exceptional because I myself never had to settle for being excluded and I think that is because my friends were and are naturally inclusive," said Richard.

"We want to prove to everyone that disability should in itself be no reason to not achieve your dreams and ambitions," says Richard as he talks about the journey that is less than a year away.

For more information on Richard and Rachel's trip and to donate visit their JustGiving page on www.harris.gb.net.