Bike ride - sponsored cycle - Grafham Water
On 22 July, 12 members of Towergate MIA agreed to cycle 10 miles
around Grafham Water for charity.
We didn't just do a straightforward 10 mile bike ride
though:
- 2 people rode a tandem (which if you've ever tried it, is not
that easy especially on a dirt track)
- 6 of us rode 30 miles by going round the reservoir 3 times
- 1 of us (Tim Gilbert) started the ride from our office in
Stevenage, cycled to Grafham Water (about 35 miles) THEN rode round
the reservoir twice before taking his place on the tandem for the
third lap. 65 miles in all!!
- To top it off, all of us had barely ridden a bike in the last
10 years
The ride started well at 10am with the 30 milers beginning their
first lap - 50 minutes later, they were back and only 1 person had
fallen off!
For their 2nd lap, Simon Trott, MD, challenged Tim to a race
with the loser having to sponsor the winner for £75. After a brief
pause Tim agreed. There was no way his pride would let him say no
despite having already ridden 45 miles that morning, so they set
off, with Tim taking an early lead. An amazing 30 minutes later,
Tim was back clearly the winner with Simon a good 5 minutes
behind.
The 3rd lap was for fun and when all the 10 milers joined in. So
at 12noon we all set off at the same time with the tandem leading
the way. Most people finished in about an hour.
A great day was had by all and naturally it ended in the pub
garden for a couple of well deserved beers and a spot of lunch.
Why did we do it?
We hoped to raise much called for funds which could be split
between 2 deserved charities - the YWCA and St Andrews Hospice,
Grimsby.
A total of £1,500 was raised on the day by the riders which has
been gladly received by the charities concerned.