News travels fast when you’re on Facebook. I was on a high speed train to London when my phone rang. It was a radio presenter friend asking if I would be willing in principle to live report into his show from the C2C.
Of course. Good publicity for the two charities I am supporting – Riding Lights Theatre Company and the Funzi and Bodo Trust.
More news once the radio slots are confirmed.
Give to Riding Lights
Give to The Funzi and Bodo Trust
I know it will rain and I will toil up a steep drenched track against a head wind wondering why I’m doing it. But I love the feeling of just me and a bike pitched against the elements in some remote corner of Britain. This year it’s a route from Sea to Sea – Whitehaven to Sunderland. On the way it winds 140 miles through The Lake District and over the Pennines.
I’ve set myself three days to complete it so that there’s time to enjoy the ride and stop at the odd tea room or two on the way. I leave Cumbria on June 23rd and arrive at the North Sea June 25th 2010.
But the real reason for the challenge is to raise money for two good causes.
I am a trustee of Riding Lights Theatre Company in York. A professional company that depends largely on the donations of its many members. To donate to them click this link C2CforRLTC
In the remote villages of Funzi and Bodo in Kenya people are threatened by a serious outbreak of cholera. Some have already died. The Funzi and Bodo Trust, which is run by Ashley Peatfield – an old colleague from the BBC, has been active in the area for some time. They have already provided a school and medical centre. Recently they have expanded the medical centre and increased the staff to combat the cholera outbreak and treat the people living there. Your sponsorship of my ride will provide funds for that charity. To donate click here C2CFunziBodo
I will be updating these pages as I train and during the ride so keep checking back.
It was a bank holiday. The sun shone, hail fell, winds blew and it tipped it down with rain. But days like that allow moody shots like this.
Thanks for visiting stopatred.org.
Listening to Nicky Campbells phonein this morning I heard too many cyclists defending themselves for not stopping at traffic lights and too many motorists citing their behaviour as evidence that cyclists are a menace.
There is no excuse. Cyclists should stop at red lights just like any other road user. The campaign Stop at Red is inviting cyclists to sign up on it’s website. On the site they offer a number of simple reasons why it makes sense.
It has two general aims:
- To encourage cyclists to show courtesy towards other road users and pedestrians.
- To encourage greater compliance with the laws of the road.
The most convincing argument for me is the one that reminds cyclists that they don’t need to jump the lights because they are already on the fastest mode of transport in town.
Wigginton Village Store
I’d forgotten how much I enjoy cycling through those villages on the edge of York Haxby, Wigginton, Shipton and Skelton. This morning they were bathed in sunshine in a gentler world – just a few miles out of the city centre.
I was on new pedals – the ones that my also new cycling shoes clip into. By all accounts, falling off is not unusual on the first few rides because you forget to disengage your feet before stopping. I didn’t fall off – this time – and so I’m bathing in a little bit of after ride glory.
SPD cycling shoes and pedals
It was a short ride today – just 12 miles – but I must keep it up as the better weather approaches. There will be a fund a raising ride again this summer. My thoughts are towards the Coast to Coast, probably over three days. I just hope it doesn’t rain as it did last year in the Yorkshire Dales.