Tag: charity rides

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Hero Ride

Hero RideYesterday (June 2) saw the conclusion of Help for Heroes’ latest fundraising challenge with over 1,300 cyclists, led by over 150 wounded Servicemen and veterans, reaching Horse Guards Parade in London. The Hero Ride concluded a week of two-wheeled fundraising for the charity and began with a mass start in South London’s Blackheath where cyclists were joined by some 300 riders who had set off last Tuesday from Paris as part of their own 350mile effort.

 

Help for Heroes Patron, Mark Cavendish, was in London to support the riders as they crossed the finish line. Speaking ahead of the event he said, ‘I definitely know about how much training and dedication has to go in to a cycling event like Hero Ride – you have to be dedicated and all of the cyclists taking part on Sunday have a great cause in Help for Heroes that they’re fighting for… The fantastic part of Hero Ride is that before the big event that the public get the chance to see in central London, each rider has completed their own personal challenge. Some cyclists are coming in from Paris, some straight from Wiltshire at the crack of dawn and that is a real achievement.’

 

For further details and to find out more about the Help For Heroes charity, see helpforheroes.org.uk

 

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Claire Lomas – The Challenge

Claire Lomas charity bike ride - claireschallengeYesterday, Monday April 22, saw the start of an extraordinary odyssey for an extraordinary woman. Claire Lomas, an accomplished equestrian, was paralysed from the chest down after a freak riding accident in 2007, but went on to walk last year’s London Marathon route with the aid of a robotic suit in an epic 17 days. Now she is set to cycle 400miles around the UK on a hand-cycle, visiting numerous schools to deliver her inspirational story and raise funds along the way for both Spinal Research and The Nicholls Foundation. By the time she reaches Westminster on May 13 Claire aims to have raised £400,000 for essential stem cell research; details of how you can help her reach her goal at claireschallenge.co.uk – read the Cyclo interview with Claire here.

 

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Stonehenge Cycle Challenge

Stonehenge Cycle ChallengeLeading travel and outdoor clothing brand, Craghoppers is to support the first ever English Heritage challenge fundraising event, the Stonehenge Cycle Challenge. Taking place over three days from September 13 to15 and covering 170miles, the challenge route will pass through some of Britain’s most beautiful countryside, including the Pembrokeshire National Park, the Brechfa Forest, and the Brecon Beacons National Park. Money raised from the event will provide much-needed funding for the creation of a visitor experience at the iconic World Heritage Site, including large exhibition galleries telling the story of Stonehenge.

 

Managing Director for Craghoppers, Jim McNamara, comments, ‘As a British brand, Craghoppers and the great British outdoors go hand in hand, so getting involved in an initiative to help raise funds for an English Heritage scheme was a natural decision for us… The great thing about this challenge is that anyone can get involved – whether you’re alone, with your family, or in a team. However you chose to do it, it promises to be an unforgettable experience!’

 

Places are limited on the Stonehenge Cycle Challenge, register your interest at english-heritage.org.uk

 

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Wooden Spoon End to End Challenge

Wooden Spoon End to End ChallengeNow in its seventh year of running, the landmark End 2 End cycle challenge, organised by Wooden Spoon a charity dedicated to helping disadvantaged children and young people across the British Isles live happier, richer lives, is in danger of cancellation due to low level of entrants which may not make it financially viable to stage. The charity, founded in 1983 and partnered by the UK rugby community, needs volunteers to take up the challenge of riding 850miles (in seven and a half days) from John O’Groats to Land’s End – the event is scheduled to begin on August 17 and if the idea of taking on this iconic challenge and raising money for an incredibly worthy charity isn’t enough for you (really?) then you might also like to know that former England Rugby captain Phil Vickery will be along for every mile of the ride too.

 

If you can help Wooden Spoon by taking up the challenge get in touch (and get training) – more details on the charity at WoodenSpoon.com and on the challenge itself at spoonchallenges.com

 

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Cycle for Work Ride to Fund Apprenticeships

Cycle for Work Ride to Fund ApprenticeshipsA group of business people from Calderdale, West Yorkshire, are getting on their bikes and cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats between April 19 and 28 in a bid to help fund at least 25 youth apprentices. Led by Steve Duncan, Community Foundation for Calderdale (CFFC) CEO, the ‘Cycle for Work’ team will be pedalling through 13 community foundation areas as they make the 940mile journey colloquially known as ‘LEJOG’. As the chosen mayoral charity for 2013, CFFC has set itself the challenge of raising over £100,000 to help fund apprenticeship positions for Calderdale youngsters. The Cycle for Work team have adapted the traditional LEJOG route so that it comes through Calderdale on April 23 where the riders will be joined by a cycle cavalcade of hundreds of local people led by the Mayor of Calderdale, John Hardy, riding a tandem.

 

In a further initiative, recognising that there are many Calderdale households with unwanted bikes or bikes in disrepair, the Community Foundation has declared a ‘bike amnesty’ whereby residents can hand in their old bikes, which will then be repaired and sold on to assist the Cycle for Work project.

 

For further information about Cycle For Work, to get involved and, obviously, to sponsor this magnificent challenge see cycleforwork.co.uk or the Community Foundation website visit cffc.co.uk

 

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Events

London to Monte Carlo Bike Ride – June 7-15

London to Monte Carlo Bike Ride Wooden SpoonCyclo can think of few more epic challenges than the London to Monte Carlo Bike Ride. Organised by the Wooden Spoon charity, founded in 1983 and dedicated to helping disadvantaged children and young people across the British Isles live happier, richer lives, they are partnered by the UK rugby community and if you need proof of commitment former English rugby union star Phil Vickery will be riding along on this incredible odyssey.

 

The route covers 760miles, in eight and a half days, from London, through the flatlands of France, the beautiful Loire Valley, the sweeping vistas of the French Alps (where you can live out your Tour de France fantasies) and on to the Riviera and Monte Carlo. With a total climb of some 28,000feet this isn’t for the faint-hearted, but the spectacularly varied scenery, great company and the knowledge of having helped a truly worthy charity will surely make it all worth the while.

 

A £400 advanced donation is required upon entry to secure a place (this is included in entry fee) and a minimum fundraising commitment of £2,950 per rider sought. For this each ‘challengee’ gets: overnight ferry crossing from Portsmouth to Caen, nine nights B&B, full support crews (including mech and physios), break and lunch stops, motorbike marshal support, a Spoon Challenges rugby shirt and cycling top and full support – including training advice – prior to the off. On top of all that, the hard work will be rewarded with a celebration dinner in Nice and to save you cycling home your bike will, of course, be transported (along with you…) In short, it looks like you will be very well looked after.

 

Further information on Wooden Spoon at WoodenSpoon.com and to take up the challenge visit spoonchallenges.com

 

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Phil Vickery Tackles 2000mile Cycle

Phil Vickery Tackles 2000mile CycleFormer English rugby union star Phil Vickery MBE is set to put some serious peddling under his feet this year as he tackles three monster rides for Wooden Spoon, the children’s charity of rugby which seeks to improve the quality and prospect of life for disadvantaged children and young people across the four home nations. Over a period of eight weeks the former England Captain and British Lion will take part in all five of charity’s flagship challenges including the 760mile trek from London to Monte Carlo (June 7-15), with an impressive 28,000 feet of climb and in a time of just 8.5 days, the ‘End2End Bike Ride’ from John O’Groats to Land’s End (7.5 days, 850miles), and the TNT Great British Bike Ride (September 3-7) a five-day slog over 350miles from Land’s End to Twickenham, for a hero’s welcome from the crowd at the Aviva Premiership Rugby London ‘Double Header.’ Off the saddle, Vickery will also be tackling The Ford Ranger Great Lakeland Challenge and taking part in the famed Four Peaks Challenge to climb the four highest mountain peaks in Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland in just 48 hours…

 

Commenting on the commitment to the challenges ahead, Vickery says: ‘What I have agreed to do this year will be extremely difficult not just physically, but also mentally and it will be hard on my family. The training I am currently putting in, is already taking it toll, and in the weeks and months leading up to the events, I want to be cycling around two to three hundred miles a week and running around 20 miles as well, which no matter how fit you are takes up a lot of hours of the day, but I am hoping the sense of achievement of both completing the challenges and the money we will raise, will more than make up for the sacrifice.’

 

For more information and to see how you can support both this incredible effort and amazing charity see: woodenspoon.com

 

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Events

Miles for Smiles Hammer Sportive – April 14

Operation Smile Miles for Smiles Hammer SportiveIf you subscribe to the Simon & Garfunkel school of thought and would rather be a hammer than a nail, then Cyclo has just the sportive challenge for you. The Miles for Smiles Hammer Cycle Sportive takes place in the heart of South Hams, Devon, with two of the toughest sounding routes in the South of England to pick from. Option one is the Sledge Hammer – a 157km challenge boasting some 21 categorised climbs and a total elevation of 3,600m; clearly not for the faint hearted or wobbly-kneed. Easier, though only by comparison, is option two the Claw Hammer at 103km in length but still with over 2,000m of climbing. Both Hammers will let you test yourself to the limit whilst offering up dramatic coastal views, idyllic villages, stunning beaches and rolling countryside…

 

Want more? This is where the ‘Miles for Smiles’ bit comes in. All that cycling effort goes towards helping Operation Smile, an international children’s medical charity, working with a team of dedicated medical volunteers who provide safe, effective reconstructive surgery for children born with facial deformities such as cleft lip and cleft palate. Since 1982, with the help of over 5,000 dedicated medical volunteers, the charity has provided over 200,000 free surgical procedures to children and young adults around the world, giving each one a new start in life.

 

Both the Sledge and Claw races carry a £29 registration fee and a further pledge to a fundraising target of £600; for your fee and commitment you get a complimentary cycling jersey, discounted accommodation, special ‘Hammer Menus’ at various restaurants the night before and a fundraising pack full of tips, advice and fundraising materials. Plus, of course, the cycling challenge itself and the satisfaction of knowing you could help change lives.

 

Full details and online entry available at operationsmile.org.uk