Now that the London to Windsor challenge has been done and whilst I am still trying to raise funds from it, I now need to be looking at my next challenge. I had originally set out a plan to ride the London to Paris route for the Geoff Thomas Foundation.
That however hit a slight snag yesterday as the website I had intended to register through seems to have removed GTF from their list of available charities. This leaves me with a slight dilemma as I await a reply from both the company that organises the particular ride I was looking into and the Geoff Thomas Foundation themselves to see if there is any alternative events.
The London to Paris is very much at the top of my ride targets for next year but having completed London to Windsor I have decided to re enter this ride again next year to improve on my time. Of course this is a slight change of heart from my original plan of doing one ride every year but I think it will not only be of benefit to myself to ride another event but also means I can carry on supporting the great work the British Heart Foundation do.
So next years plan has extend a little, well providing I can find a company to do the London to Paris on behalf of GTF with, but my return to London - Windsor with the British Heart Foundation is a certainty.
If anyone can help with my struggle to find a company to do London to Paris with it would be appreciated.
Wednesday 8 September 2010
Tuesday 7 September 2010
London To Windsor 5th September
After months and months of preparation and fund raising the day finally came around on Sunday. I have to admit to waking up feeling a little bit nervy. Would I manage to complete the ride, what if I got a puncture or 5, surely I won't be the slowest. That was just a selection of the thoughts going through my head as I rode my first mile of the day from home to the station.
Having caught the first train from Wokingham to Richmond I was kind of relived to see about 15 other people all loading their bikes onto the train as well. The closer to Richmond we got, the more bikes that seemed to be filling the train until we reached Staines and the train was practically full of people with bikes.
The start of the ride was only a few hundred yards from Richmond station and having arrived just after 9, I joined the rather large queue waiting to go through the start gates. It took till 9.40 for me to actually get underway but the sense of relive that seemed to hit me as I rode under the start banner seemed to wipe away my earlier doubts.
This was my first event of this type and having decided to do it on my own rather than in a group it meant that from 9.40 till I crossed that finish line I would be on my own, listening to my Ipod and following in the tracks of numerous riders before me. It was a new experience but once I'd negotiated my way around the one way system in Richmond I set into a rythmn that would carry me through to the finish.
Apart from a couple of riders going down in front of me I didn't have any real drama's or wobbles and even with the threat of passing cars it all seemed to be a lot better than I had imagined. Of course there were a number of riders, all dressed in professional team kit that seemed to be passing me with relative ease, but I'm pleased to say that I was even managing a few overtaking manoeuvres of my own.
With the majority of the first 15 or so miles being relatively flat the first hill leaving Chertsey came as a bit of a shock but having taken a minute struggling to regroup and adjust my gears I managed to pull it back together.
It would be fair to say that after an hour and a 3/4 on the bike the sight of the 8 miles to go sign coming away from Virginia Water was really an uplifting moment. Looking back I realised that coming up the previous hill I had sagged a little but that sign lifted my spirits and whilst I can honestly say it was a struggle I managed to complete the whole course in just under 2 and a half hours.
The finish straight was a very welcome sight and if someone had told me I would reach it in a time just under 2 and a half hours I would have laughed at them. Despite my training since January/February time I still didn't feel confident but I can honestly say I was pleased with my time.
Of course the only thing left to do now is to take the experience from this year and register again next year to try and imrpove on my time.
At the time of writing the donations currently stand at £205, so any more anyone is willing to give would be fantastic, the just giving page is open until the 5th
December 2010 and can be found here
Thank you to all who have donated so far, now onto the next challenges, watch this space
Having caught the first train from Wokingham to Richmond I was kind of relived to see about 15 other people all loading their bikes onto the train as well. The closer to Richmond we got, the more bikes that seemed to be filling the train until we reached Staines and the train was practically full of people with bikes.
The start of the ride was only a few hundred yards from Richmond station and having arrived just after 9, I joined the rather large queue waiting to go through the start gates. It took till 9.40 for me to actually get underway but the sense of relive that seemed to hit me as I rode under the start banner seemed to wipe away my earlier doubts.
This was my first event of this type and having decided to do it on my own rather than in a group it meant that from 9.40 till I crossed that finish line I would be on my own, listening to my Ipod and following in the tracks of numerous riders before me. It was a new experience but once I'd negotiated my way around the one way system in Richmond I set into a rythmn that would carry me through to the finish.
Apart from a couple of riders going down in front of me I didn't have any real drama's or wobbles and even with the threat of passing cars it all seemed to be a lot better than I had imagined. Of course there were a number of riders, all dressed in professional team kit that seemed to be passing me with relative ease, but I'm pleased to say that I was even managing a few overtaking manoeuvres of my own.
With the majority of the first 15 or so miles being relatively flat the first hill leaving Chertsey came as a bit of a shock but having taken a minute struggling to regroup and adjust my gears I managed to pull it back together.
It would be fair to say that after an hour and a 3/4 on the bike the sight of the 8 miles to go sign coming away from Virginia Water was really an uplifting moment. Looking back I realised that coming up the previous hill I had sagged a little but that sign lifted my spirits and whilst I can honestly say it was a struggle I managed to complete the whole course in just under 2 and a half hours.
The finish straight was a very welcome sight and if someone had told me I would reach it in a time just under 2 and a half hours I would have laughed at them. Despite my training since January/February time I still didn't feel confident but I can honestly say I was pleased with my time.
Of course the only thing left to do now is to take the experience from this year and register again next year to try and imrpove on my time.
At the time of writing the donations currently stand at £205, so any more anyone is willing to give would be fantastic, the just giving page is open until the 5th
December 2010 and can be found here
Thank you to all who have donated so far, now onto the next challenges, watch this space
Wednesday 21 April 2010
A quick update
Ok so I've not really updated much recently, mostly becasue I've just not had the time and to be honest I haven't had much to say. Well until now anyway.
Yesterday afternoon I saw a message from Jason Manford (The Comedian) on Twitter offering to Sponsor the first 10 people who sent him a sponsorship link. So even though I thought I'd missed my chance I sent my Just giving page link anyway.
To my surprise I'd actually made it through in time and Jason has very kindly made a donation of £50 in support of my London to Windsor Bike ride, you can read all about Jason's donations here.
So I'd like to once again say a huge Thank You to Jason Manford for his generous donation.
If you would like to make a donation you can do so on my Donation's Page
Thank you
Yesterday afternoon I saw a message from Jason Manford (The Comedian) on Twitter offering to Sponsor the first 10 people who sent him a sponsorship link. So even though I thought I'd missed my chance I sent my Just giving page link anyway.
To my surprise I'd actually made it through in time and Jason has very kindly made a donation of £50 in support of my London to Windsor Bike ride, you can read all about Jason's donations here.
So I'd like to once again say a huge Thank You to Jason Manford for his generous donation.
If you would like to make a donation you can do so on my Donation's Page
Thank you
Sunday 7 March 2010
Updating at Last
So firstly it seems like ages since my last blog update but in all honesty I've firstly not had the time on a computer and secondly not really had a lot to report.
The training for London to Windsor is still going well and I'm managing around 30 minutes a night on my bike, which given everything else that’s going on at the moment is quite an achievement.
One thing that has struck me over the last few weeks is just how difficult fundraising actually is. I've managed to get £65 raised so far for The British Heart Foundation but it seems to be quite hard to get that figure to keep increasing. I know I'm probably annoying everyone on twitter with my constant tweets about the British Heart Foundation but as well as raising funds I'd like to raise a bit of awareness about what they do.
Obviously I'm keen to try and raise as much money as possible and if anyone reading this could give some thoughts on ways to fundraise, approaches and ideas it would really be appreciated.
One thought, which I'm working on trying to make happen, is to have a raffle of some sort. Working on the basis that anyone who makes a £1 donation on Just Giving gets an entry into a raffle to win a DVD, Blu Ray, Cd or Computer Game. Obviously every subsequent pound would also count as a further entry. Once the donations reach a certain mark or date there is a prize draw and the winner will receive this prize. I'm obviously still working on this idea but does anyone think this will work?
I'd like to hear people’s opinions on this and while I'm at it I'd also like to know if anyone actually reads these updates, so please leave a comment either here or on twitter just saying I read them or something similar.
Donations still stand at £65 and if you'd like to increase that you can do so on Just Giving
Thanks for Reading
The training for London to Windsor is still going well and I'm managing around 30 minutes a night on my bike, which given everything else that’s going on at the moment is quite an achievement.
One thing that has struck me over the last few weeks is just how difficult fundraising actually is. I've managed to get £65 raised so far for The British Heart Foundation but it seems to be quite hard to get that figure to keep increasing. I know I'm probably annoying everyone on twitter with my constant tweets about the British Heart Foundation but as well as raising funds I'd like to raise a bit of awareness about what they do.
Obviously I'm keen to try and raise as much money as possible and if anyone reading this could give some thoughts on ways to fundraise, approaches and ideas it would really be appreciated.
One thought, which I'm working on trying to make happen, is to have a raffle of some sort. Working on the basis that anyone who makes a £1 donation on Just Giving gets an entry into a raffle to win a DVD, Blu Ray, Cd or Computer Game. Obviously every subsequent pound would also count as a further entry. Once the donations reach a certain mark or date there is a prize draw and the winner will receive this prize. I'm obviously still working on this idea but does anyone think this will work?
I'd like to hear people’s opinions on this and while I'm at it I'd also like to know if anyone actually reads these updates, so please leave a comment either here or on twitter just saying I read them or something similar.
Donations still stand at £65 and if you'd like to increase that you can do so on Just Giving
Thanks for Reading
Sunday 21 February 2010
A Few Facts
Just a quick Blog post with some facts and figures about the work The British Heart Foundation do:
Fact #1
Every 6 minutes someone in the UK dies from a heart attack
Fact #2
Every 11 minutes a Man in the UK dies from a heart attack.
Fact #3
Every 13 minutes a woman dies from a heart attack in the UK
Fact #4
Around one in 145 babies is born with congenital heart disease.
Fact #5
Every year around 141,000 people in the Uk suffer a heart attack
Fact #6
Around 86,000 people in the UK die of a heart attack every year.
Fact #7
Heart and circulatory disease claims around 200,000 lives in the UK each year.
Fact #8
Around 720,000 people in the UK are living with heart failure.
Donations for my @thebhf London to Windsor bike ride stands at £65 help increase it by clicking Here
Fact #1
Every 6 minutes someone in the UK dies from a heart attack
Fact #2
Every 11 minutes a Man in the UK dies from a heart attack.
Fact #3
Every 13 minutes a woman dies from a heart attack in the UK
Fact #4
Around one in 145 babies is born with congenital heart disease.
Fact #5
Every year around 141,000 people in the Uk suffer a heart attack
Fact #6
Around 86,000 people in the UK die of a heart attack every year.
Fact #7
Heart and circulatory disease claims around 200,000 lives in the UK each year.
Fact #8
Around 720,000 people in the UK are living with heart failure.
Donations for my @thebhf London to Windsor bike ride stands at £65 help increase it by clicking Here
Saturday 20 February 2010
Where the Money Goes
When it comes to Fundraising I think it's important to know where the money goes, what it gets spent on and also a bit about the Charity your fundraising on behalf of. So I set out this week to find out a bit more about my choosen charity for London to Windsor, The British Heart Foundation.
As I'm boring everyone on Twitter with updates on statistics about The British Heart Foundation I thought this would be a good place to tell you about what they actually do with the money. Obviously because of the name 100% of the money raised stays in the UK helping to fight the increasing number of cases of Heart Disease.
So during my research this week I found out what the following amounts raised are typically spent on by The British Heart Foundation.
£30 - Heartstart UK training Pack
For every £30 raised they can invest in a Heartstart training pack. The Heartstart UK scheme teaches members of the public what to do in a life-threatening emergency. So £30 could fund a Heartstart UK training pack to teach people these vital skills.
£124 - Fund a resuscitation training manikin
I remember these from first aid training courses at Scouts. Just £124 worth of donations could fund the cost of a Little Anne manikin, a realistic adult manikin used when training people in performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Performing CPR buys time and more than doubles the chances of survival for someone following cardiac arrest.
£140 - Teaching life-saving skills in Schools
£140 could cover the cost of 'supply cover', allowing teachers the time away from classes to be trained as Heartstart UK instructors, able to teach vital emergency life support skills to their pupils.
£1,500 - Help save a life
The average cost of a defibrillator is £1,500. A defibrillator is a machie that can restart the heart by giving it an electric shock in some cases of cardiac arrest. When someone has a cardiac arrest defibrillation needs to be promt. For every minute that passes the chance of survival decreases by 14 per cent. The British Heart Foundation. provides grants to support the cost of life saving defibrillators.
With the London to Windsor my entry fee covers the cost of holding the event and it's up to those taking part to raise money for The British Heart Foundation. That's where anyone reading this comes in. They need donations to help to fund those items listed above and more to try and combat Heart disease.
So even if you can only afford £1 any money is a great help to them so please click on this link and give as little or as much as you can.
Thank you for reading and please spread the word to friends and family to help raise funds for a very worthwhile cause.
As I'm boring everyone on Twitter with updates on statistics about The British Heart Foundation I thought this would be a good place to tell you about what they actually do with the money. Obviously because of the name 100% of the money raised stays in the UK helping to fight the increasing number of cases of Heart Disease.
So during my research this week I found out what the following amounts raised are typically spent on by The British Heart Foundation.
£30 - Heartstart UK training Pack
For every £30 raised they can invest in a Heartstart training pack. The Heartstart UK scheme teaches members of the public what to do in a life-threatening emergency. So £30 could fund a Heartstart UK training pack to teach people these vital skills.
£124 - Fund a resuscitation training manikin
I remember these from first aid training courses at Scouts. Just £124 worth of donations could fund the cost of a Little Anne manikin, a realistic adult manikin used when training people in performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Performing CPR buys time and more than doubles the chances of survival for someone following cardiac arrest.
£140 - Teaching life-saving skills in Schools
£140 could cover the cost of 'supply cover', allowing teachers the time away from classes to be trained as Heartstart UK instructors, able to teach vital emergency life support skills to their pupils.
£1,500 - Help save a life
The average cost of a defibrillator is £1,500. A defibrillator is a machie that can restart the heart by giving it an electric shock in some cases of cardiac arrest. When someone has a cardiac arrest defibrillation needs to be promt. For every minute that passes the chance of survival decreases by 14 per cent. The British Heart Foundation. provides grants to support the cost of life saving defibrillators.
With the London to Windsor my entry fee covers the cost of holding the event and it's up to those taking part to raise money for The British Heart Foundation. That's where anyone reading this comes in. They need donations to help to fund those items listed above and more to try and combat Heart disease.
So even if you can only afford £1 any money is a great help to them so please click on this link and give as little or as much as you can.
Thank you for reading and please spread the word to friends and family to help raise funds for a very worthwhile cause.
Sunday 14 February 2010
Into The Swing
Firstly I must appologise for my lack of updates the last couple of weeks. What with being back at work and spending almost all of last weekend in Lincoln I've not really had a chance to get on the computer and update things.
Away from the bike I've extended my original 2 weeks temping work up until next Friday giving me almost a full months money. Just need it to carry on or another one to come up so I don't stop now that I'm finally back into the working world.
Back to the bike side of things and I've really got underway with my training. I finally managed to get my Turbo Trainer set up yesterday and went for a ride in the living room. Makes it far easier to get on the bike, especially with the tempremental weather we seem to be having at the moment. Coupled with the side stepper Jen has bought for herself I now have a couple of different methods of excercise to keep on target for the 5th September.
Finally I'd like to thank Tink from Rants Online Pub for the £5 donation made this morning. It takes the overall total up to £50. hopefully once my Sponsor pack arrives from British Heart Foundation next month that should start to increase even more.
Finally a plug for my donations page, it can be found on Just Giving and currently sits at £50, so any additions you could make to that, even if it's only a £1 would be much appreciated. To donate then please click Here
Away from the bike I've extended my original 2 weeks temping work up until next Friday giving me almost a full months money. Just need it to carry on or another one to come up so I don't stop now that I'm finally back into the working world.
Back to the bike side of things and I've really got underway with my training. I finally managed to get my Turbo Trainer set up yesterday and went for a ride in the living room. Makes it far easier to get on the bike, especially with the tempremental weather we seem to be having at the moment. Coupled with the side stepper Jen has bought for herself I now have a couple of different methods of excercise to keep on target for the 5th September.
Finally I'd like to thank Tink from Rants Online Pub for the £5 donation made this morning. It takes the overall total up to £50. hopefully once my Sponsor pack arrives from British Heart Foundation next month that should start to increase even more.
Finally a plug for my donations page, it can be found on Just Giving and currently sits at £50, so any additions you could make to that, even if it's only a £1 would be much appreciated. To donate then please click Here
Sunday 31 January 2010
Weigh In
After a week of at least making a start to my training, be it a little restricted due to a shoulder injury I am pleased to report that as of 12.30 yesterday my first week back on the better eating and exercise regime has seen me drop 2 lbs.
Current Weight - 16st 14lb
Current Weight - 16st 14lb
Saturday 30 January 2010
Funny Old Week
So my first week back at work has also seen a bit of a sudden stop in my training already. Not because I haven't had the time but because last Sunday evening I stupidly injured my shoulder playing on the Wii. After a couple of hours of what seemed like innocuous fun playing basketball and sword fighting I awoke on Monday morning to a killer sore shoulder and the result was an inability really do anything.
Thankfully though that has cleared up and it seems somewhat fortuitously as my turbo trainer also arrived yesterday. I can now get on and exercise and train without the worry of the weather stopping me from getting on the bike. Once I get it set up later today you can expect some photos in the very near future.
As already mentioned on twitter this morning the fundraising total has reached £45. While this has been a good start in the first month I realise I’ll have to nag and promote a little bit more to try and increase that figure, so if anyone would like to give, even if it’s only a £1 it would be much appreciated and you can do so here - Donations Page
I’ve also been talking with @getwokingham through twitter and they have mentioned a possibility of doing an article on my London to Windsor ride for the local paper. So I’ll be sure to keep you updated with any further developments on that front as they happen.
Finally I'd like to say thank you to the following Twitter users for the Retweets of my fundraising page. All of your help is much appreciated:
@BillyGottaJob
@TeamSky
@TweeetStreet
@thebhf
@giraffetweet
@LondonIrishNews
@getwokingham
Also a big thanks to those who have retweeted the link once it had been retweeted by the above. All of your help is much appreciated and hopefully come the 5th September I will have at least hit my target of £400.
Thankfully though that has cleared up and it seems somewhat fortuitously as my turbo trainer also arrived yesterday. I can now get on and exercise and train without the worry of the weather stopping me from getting on the bike. Once I get it set up later today you can expect some photos in the very near future.
As already mentioned on twitter this morning the fundraising total has reached £45. While this has been a good start in the first month I realise I’ll have to nag and promote a little bit more to try and increase that figure, so if anyone would like to give, even if it’s only a £1 it would be much appreciated and you can do so here - Donations Page
I’ve also been talking with @getwokingham through twitter and they have mentioned a possibility of doing an article on my London to Windsor ride for the local paper. So I’ll be sure to keep you updated with any further developments on that front as they happen.
Finally I'd like to say thank you to the following Twitter users for the Retweets of my fundraising page. All of your help is much appreciated:
@BillyGottaJob
@TeamSky
@TweeetStreet
@thebhf
@giraffetweet
@LondonIrishNews
@getwokingham
Also a big thanks to those who have retweeted the link once it had been retweeted by the above. All of your help is much appreciated and hopefully come the 5th September I will have at least hit my target of £400.
Sunday 24 January 2010
In addition to the constant annoyance on Twitter and the updates on here, the link and support group for my London to Windsor and Beyond effort has now expanded to facebook as well, where there is now a group set up to run in tandem with my twitter, this blog and also the just giving page. If anyone would like to join the group and spread the word on Facebook as well then please feel free to do so by following this link. Facebook page
I've also received a very good idea from Debbie in terms of trying to spread the word a bit more and that is by trying to get a few celebs and news groups on board to try and retweet the message and get it out into the public domain a little further. Obviously any help with fundraising is appreciated and so far there have been 3 retweets out of about 10 so that's not a bad start.
Finally I'd like to thank Lisa Stibbons for her donation via the Facebook group which now takes the grand total up to £45 and means that there is now 12% of the Fundraising total in the bank. Obviously though this is still way short of the overall goal and any help, even if it's just a pound will be a great help.
I've also received a very good idea from Debbie in terms of trying to spread the word a bit more and that is by trying to get a few celebs and news groups on board to try and retweet the message and get it out into the public domain a little further. Obviously any help with fundraising is appreciated and so far there have been 3 retweets out of about 10 so that's not a bad start.
Finally I'd like to thank Lisa Stibbons for her donation via the Facebook group which now takes the grand total up to £45 and means that there is now 12% of the Fundraising total in the bank. Obviously though this is still way short of the overall goal and any help, even if it's just a pound will be a great help.
Saturday 23 January 2010
New Target Announced
Given that next year my fundraising target has to be a minimum of £1300 I thought it best to increase my target for the British Heart Foundation from £200 and double it up to £400. That's not to say that this will be my final target but for now it feels like more of a challenge, especially with only £40 in the bag already. If anyone would like to add to that Sponsorship then you can do so here Donations Page
Many Thanks
Andy
Many Thanks
Andy
Shocking Discovery
Right so now that the snow has gone and I can get back out on my Bike I decided, by way of using the Wii Fit, that it was time to have my training weigh in. Now before Christmas I was sitting at just over the 16 stone mark and thought I might have increased a little but wasn't expecting anything drastic in terms of weight gain.
On went the Wii and fired up through to the weigh in section and to my shock and horror I stepped on and off the board to find that I've gained almost a stone since the start of December. That means at the start of my training my official weight is 17 stone 1 pound. To say I was shocked by this is an understatement. I don't really feel like I'd over indulged too much over the last few months but it would seem this constant state of unemployment has really taken its toll.
Of course while initially it was a shock it has also come as a bit of a jolt and the encouragement and enthusiasm is once again back to start getting that weight off.
A big help is going to be my return to work on Monday, even though it is for an initial 2 weeks it will get me out of the house and stop the bored snacking between meals.
From now on there will be a weekly weight update just to let you all know what is going on and what training I have managed to fit into the previous week.
One last plea is to ask you all to spread the word to anyone you can. I need to start pushing the fundraising element of this challenge and anything you or anyone you can point in this direction can donate will be of great help and will be very gratefully received.
Current Weight - 17st 1lb
On went the Wii and fired up through to the weigh in section and to my shock and horror I stepped on and off the board to find that I've gained almost a stone since the start of December. That means at the start of my training my official weight is 17 stone 1 pound. To say I was shocked by this is an understatement. I don't really feel like I'd over indulged too much over the last few months but it would seem this constant state of unemployment has really taken its toll.
Of course while initially it was a shock it has also come as a bit of a jolt and the encouragement and enthusiasm is once again back to start getting that weight off.
A big help is going to be my return to work on Monday, even though it is for an initial 2 weeks it will get me out of the house and stop the bored snacking between meals.
From now on there will be a weekly weight update just to let you all know what is going on and what training I have managed to fit into the previous week.
One last plea is to ask you all to spread the word to anyone you can. I need to start pushing the fundraising element of this challenge and anything you or anyone you can point in this direction can donate will be of great help and will be very gratefully received.
Current Weight - 17st 1lb
Sunday 17 January 2010
Snow Big Deal
Finally after a day of heavy rain yesterday the snow has finally gone and the roads have returned to normal. It's a big relief as it means I can finally get out on my bike and start doing a bit of training and more importantly start to get into shape to ride further and further every time.
So my big weigh in will take place over the course of the next week so be sure to look out for the results of that. Also got a bit of maintenance to carry out on my bike after 4 months of neglect whilst I've struggled for motivation. Of course there are still some pieces of kit I need to pick up but none of it is essential and a start on the training regime can begin.
I'm still looking for suggestions of a decent fundraising target, plus any donations that anyone could make would be fantastic. I would also appreciate if everyone could spread the word on what I'm planning to do over the next few years as it's not just about this yearsBritish Heart Foundation Ride but also about the bigger picture and I'd like to make a reasonable contribution to the British Heart Foundation before moving on to support the @GeoffThomasFoun with further rides over the next few years.
If you could spread the word it would be appreciated and should you with to make a donation to my London to Windsor ride for the British Heart Foundation then you can do so here - Donations Page
So my big weigh in will take place over the course of the next week so be sure to look out for the results of that. Also got a bit of maintenance to carry out on my bike after 4 months of neglect whilst I've struggled for motivation. Of course there are still some pieces of kit I need to pick up but none of it is essential and a start on the training regime can begin.
I'm still looking for suggestions of a decent fundraising target, plus any donations that anyone could make would be fantastic. I would also appreciate if everyone could spread the word on what I'm planning to do over the next few years as it's not just about this yearsBritish Heart Foundation Ride but also about the bigger picture and I'd like to make a reasonable contribution to the British Heart Foundation before moving on to support the @GeoffThomasFoun with further rides over the next few years.
If you could spread the word it would be appreciated and should you with to make a donation to my London to Windsor ride for the British Heart Foundation then you can do so here - Donations Page
Monday 11 January 2010
Cabin Fever
With all the snow still lying around it is fair to say that any notion of training has been put well and truly on the back burner. I have been doing little bits on the Wii Fit but the opportunity to actually get out there and start riding the bike are being somewhat delayed.
On the plus side I have managed to pick myself up a pair of Cannondale cycling gloves for just £10 on eBay and the longer the start of training is delayed the more chance I have of having them when I start.
While the bad weather is allegedly set to continue for at least another 9 days I am hoping to be out on the bike next week and at least get a couple of hours under my belt, its times like these I wish I had a Turbo Trainer. Instead I have been formulating a plan to start my training and have decided that when training starts proper, hopefully on Monday, I will provide picture and a weight of the before on the blog so it can be gauged against the after come time of the ride and the progress in between.
In the mean time after my previous blog update I'm still looking for suggestions on a fundraising target, ways and means of getting there and how I can increase the readership of this blog and my following on twitter. Any suggestions will be gratefully received.
Also if anyone would like to donate you can do so here - Donations Page
On the plus side I have managed to pick myself up a pair of Cannondale cycling gloves for just £10 on eBay and the longer the start of training is delayed the more chance I have of having them when I start.
While the bad weather is allegedly set to continue for at least another 9 days I am hoping to be out on the bike next week and at least get a couple of hours under my belt, its times like these I wish I had a Turbo Trainer. Instead I have been formulating a plan to start my training and have decided that when training starts proper, hopefully on Monday, I will provide picture and a weight of the before on the blog so it can be gauged against the after come time of the ride and the progress in between.
In the mean time after my previous blog update I'm still looking for suggestions on a fundraising target, ways and means of getting there and how I can increase the readership of this blog and my following on twitter. Any suggestions will be gratefully received.
Also if anyone would like to donate you can do so here - Donations Page
Friday 8 January 2010
Fundraising, Readership and Followers
Ok so now that I’m under way with the fundraising and preparation for not only the London to Windsor but the longer term goals as well it started me thinking. In order to achieve the goal of London to Paris and Paris to Geneva I need to meet a minimum sponsorship target to confirm my place. Obviously this will take some working towards and so I thought perhaps it was time to set a more ambitious total for the forthcoming London to Windsor.
At the moment I've set a target of just £200 and thanks to an incredibly generous Donation from @BillyGottaJob (Thank you again, much appreciated) we are now under way and adding in an offline donation I'm almost up to 25% of my target in the first week. Obviously I know that not every week will increase the Donations by that much but every little helps. It's for that reason that I've decided to open the question up to anyone who happens to read this blog.
My question to all of you who might happen to be reading, what do you think my Fundraising total should be? Any serious suggestions will be considered and the amount will be adjusted to take it into account. In addition I'd also be very grateful for any fundraising suggestions anybody might have.
Finally I also need to try and attract more people to reading this blog and also following me on Twitter if I am to reach the minimum levels set out for the London to Paris and Paris to Geneva and that is where you come in, If you can tell even one person or know of any way I can reach a wider audience to promote what I'm trying to achieve it would be very much appreciated and will certainly help with reaching the end goals.
At the moment I've set a target of just £200 and thanks to an incredibly generous Donation from @BillyGottaJob (Thank you again, much appreciated) we are now under way and adding in an offline donation I'm almost up to 25% of my target in the first week. Obviously I know that not every week will increase the Donations by that much but every little helps. It's for that reason that I've decided to open the question up to anyone who happens to read this blog.
My question to all of you who might happen to be reading, what do you think my Fundraising total should be? Any serious suggestions will be considered and the amount will be adjusted to take it into account. In addition I'd also be very grateful for any fundraising suggestions anybody might have.
Finally I also need to try and attract more people to reading this blog and also following me on Twitter if I am to reach the minimum levels set out for the London to Paris and Paris to Geneva and that is where you come in, If you can tell even one person or know of any way I can reach a wider audience to promote what I'm trying to achieve it would be very much appreciated and will certainly help with reaching the end goals.
Wednesday 6 January 2010
It's Official
So it is now official and I've paid my £17 to register for the London to Windsor ride. It means that I now have 242 days until the start of the ride in association with the British Heart Foundation.
I shall be receiving my official event participant number in March so will let you know what it's going to be as soon as I get it. For now though it seems an ideal opportunity to show off the gear I've got at my disposal for this event and the others planned within my earlier Blog post.
Firstly there is my bike, obtained for the princely sum of £600 a couple of years ago from Pedal On cycles in Tadley.
Then we have my Helmet also purchased from the same shop in Tadley
Still to come of course is my training gear but that is going to be ordered from eBay very shortly and as Team Sky haven't got the official kit out as yet I will probably be opting for HTC Columbia kit for my training and event riding too no doubt.
The eagle eyed amongst you will have noticed the addition of the fundraising Widget at the side of the page. For this event I've set myself a rather modest £200 target for the Heart foundation and hope I'll be able to raise that before next year’s events which require a far greater level of sponsorship. If anyone would like to make a donation then you can either use the Widget on the left here or visit my Just giving page on this link - http://bit.ly/8FCmuE.
Any donations will be gratefully received. Any support you can give would be fantastic and if you can spread the word about my blog and efforts a little further then I will be even more grateful.
I shall be receiving my official event participant number in March so will let you know what it's going to be as soon as I get it. For now though it seems an ideal opportunity to show off the gear I've got at my disposal for this event and the others planned within my earlier Blog post.
Firstly there is my bike, obtained for the princely sum of £600 a couple of years ago from Pedal On cycles in Tadley.
Then we have my Helmet also purchased from the same shop in Tadley
Still to come of course is my training gear but that is going to be ordered from eBay very shortly and as Team Sky haven't got the official kit out as yet I will probably be opting for HTC Columbia kit for my training and event riding too no doubt.
The eagle eyed amongst you will have noticed the addition of the fundraising Widget at the side of the page. For this event I've set myself a rather modest £200 target for the Heart foundation and hope I'll be able to raise that before next year’s events which require a far greater level of sponsorship. If anyone would like to make a donation then you can either use the Widget on the left here or visit my Just giving page on this link - http://bit.ly/8FCmuE.
Any donations will be gratefully received. Any support you can give would be fantastic and if you can spread the word about my blog and efforts a little further then I will be even more grateful.
To Windsor And Beyond
So on New Year's eve I said I was going to do 2 Blog posts one reviewing last year and one stating some aims for this year. Well the more observant of you will have noticed that I failed to find the motivation for the second of those posts, which is exactly what this one is going to be.
For the last 2 years I've spoken to a few people about doing various cycling events such as London to Brighton or London to Southend and the response and subsequent result has always been the same. Initially everyone is really keen and oh yeah we'll do that sounds great and as the weeks go by an excuse comes from one and then another and we end up not doing it.
I've now decided however that I am fed up of relying on other people and whilst it would be nice to actually do these events with someone I've decided I might as well get on and do it myself, not worrying about whether anyone else is doing it or not.
Initially I planned to do the London Bikeathon (http://bit.ly/5NJZi9) for Leukaemia Research and even managed to convince myself that it was July 27th. That was until Saturday when browsing the Website I noticed it was in fact June 27th which put a rather large spoke in my wheels so to speak. You see the weekend before, Saturday 19th June, I am getting married and we fly off to Spain on a two week Honeymoon on June 20th.
So this left me with a bit of a problem at the first hurdle of my three year plan. you see during that period between Christmas and new year I stumbled upon a website that organises charity bike rides and they offer the chance to do London to Paris for the Geoff Thomas Foundation (http://bit.ly/8AppYY) and so I formulated the following plan:
2010 - London Bikeathon (Leukaemia Research)
2011 - London to Paris (Geoff Thomas Foundation)
2012 - Paris to Geneva (Geoff Thomas Foundation)
2013 - To Be Decided
I had to find an alternative for 2010 and thankfully I remembered the multitude of rides offered by the British Heart Foundation (http://bit.ly/7LeICe) and after looking on their website I have decided to take on the challenge for 2010 of the London to Windsor ride.
The ride itself takes in 37 miles from Richmond to Windsor and should provide me with a good goal for my first phase of training for the London to Paris challenge next year.
So from now on this blog is also going to incorporate my efforts to get fit and work towards these goals. I will be signing up for the ride today so look out for another Blog update in the next 2 days.
For the last 2 years I've spoken to a few people about doing various cycling events such as London to Brighton or London to Southend and the response and subsequent result has always been the same. Initially everyone is really keen and oh yeah we'll do that sounds great and as the weeks go by an excuse comes from one and then another and we end up not doing it.
I've now decided however that I am fed up of relying on other people and whilst it would be nice to actually do these events with someone I've decided I might as well get on and do it myself, not worrying about whether anyone else is doing it or not.
Initially I planned to do the London Bikeathon (http://bit.ly/5NJZi9) for Leukaemia Research and even managed to convince myself that it was July 27th. That was until Saturday when browsing the Website I noticed it was in fact June 27th which put a rather large spoke in my wheels so to speak. You see the weekend before, Saturday 19th June, I am getting married and we fly off to Spain on a two week Honeymoon on June 20th.
So this left me with a bit of a problem at the first hurdle of my three year plan. you see during that period between Christmas and new year I stumbled upon a website that organises charity bike rides and they offer the chance to do London to Paris for the Geoff Thomas Foundation (http://bit.ly/8AppYY) and so I formulated the following plan:
2010 - London Bikeathon (Leukaemia Research)
2011 - London to Paris (Geoff Thomas Foundation)
2012 - Paris to Geneva (Geoff Thomas Foundation)
2013 - To Be Decided
I had to find an alternative for 2010 and thankfully I remembered the multitude of rides offered by the British Heart Foundation (http://bit.ly/7LeICe) and after looking on their website I have decided to take on the challenge for 2010 of the London to Windsor ride.
The ride itself takes in 37 miles from Richmond to Windsor and should provide me with a good goal for my first phase of training for the London to Paris challenge next year.
So from now on this blog is also going to incorporate my efforts to get fit and work towards these goals. I will be signing up for the ride today so look out for another Blog update in the next 2 days.
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