Story
Who we are
Two guys sharing a common interest in cycling and with some spare time looking for something good to do. Brothers-in-Law Carl Sargunar and Adam Newton, with a free week of time on our hands, never having visited Paris’ Eiffel tower, challenging each other to a ride there and a drink at the base of the tower.
Why are we doing this
First, and foremost for the adventure; the distance involved is long enough to be challenging, but not so long as to be impossible. Without having attempted this kind of cycling challenge before, or indeed any kind beside the cycle to work and back, and neither of us having visited Paris, it was a good opportunity to kill two birds with one stone – but at the same time the opportunity to raise a bit of money for a worthwhile cause would be too good to waste.
Using bikes that cost a grand total of £30 between them, acquired from the local free-Ads website (Trade-it.co.uk) and fixed up, we also thought it would be a good way of advertising the benefits of re-using and recycling wherever possible to reduce the impact of on increasingly limited Landfill on the environment around us. We aim to spend as little as possible on the cycles themselves, investing instead on fixing them up ourselves using their original parts where possible and parts from other bikes where not.
Why Cancer Research
Both of us have come indirectly into contact with cancer and have a small awareness of the effects cancer can have on individuals and families, we thought it definitely a worthy cause to back.
How we are Preparing
Training during any time available; evenings and weekends a speciality taking our recently fixed-up bikes on the road. So far using mainly the Bristol – Bath railway track route (very pretty place – loads of blackberries and Butterflies . . . and clouds of other flying insects that insist on flying at your eyes and mouth!!) and the hills around Bristol and Bath we’ve prepared over 4 weeks. Also travelling to Wales and Swindon.
The Route
Starting from our front door in Easton on Monday the 7th of September, we aim to travel 140 miles to Brighton on the first day. Staying overnight (and every night of the trip) at a Hostel we’ll cycle near the White Cliffs to Dover and cross over to [Either Cailis or Boulogne-sur-Mer] for the second night. Amiens for the third night and Paris for Thursday afternoon, fingers crossed, and to a cold glass of ... well, cold is the main thing.
Coming back
Joined on Thursday by Carl’s wife Ceri and a friend of hers, we’ll hitch a lift back to Bristol with them, [. . . in our beat up old civic coupe in all likelihood] picking up some nice cheese and wine on the way.
Now a little from the website!
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