My name is Ben Llewellyn and on September 15th 2019 I am going to Tenby, Pembrokeshire, to compete in Ironman Wales to raise money for Wings for Life Spinal Cord Foundation.

 

On June 21st 2017 I suffered a training accident whilst testing for the upcoming Enduro World Series Race (EWS) in Millau, France.

 I lost control of my bike over step down jump and all I remember is going over the handlebars, the harsh slap of my back on the ground and my bike flipping end for end with the back tyre hissing.

Please see the mbr magazine write up via the link below:

https://www.mbr.co.uk/news/mountain-biker-seven-hours-362147

My final injuries were 4 broken vertebrae, t4 through t7 loss of sensation in my legs, multiple broken ribs, a collapsed lung and a fractured shoulder.

I’m not one of those people who trains for the hell of it or for body image. I need a goal, first of all it was to get out of bed, get out of hospital, regain as much of the feeling/sensation in my legs as possible, walk unaided, get back to racing a bike. On September 8th 2018 I achieved this goal with a 9th place elite finish at Eastridge Woods Shropshire. Now alongside racing MTB my goal is to compete not just complete in an Ironman.

I’ve had a long road back to recovery, and still a way to go. I still suffer with my injuries, nerve pain, loss of sensation, pins and needles but regardless of this I’m one of the lucky ones. 

I have many friends, and people I know of that have not been as fortunate as me and I’d really like to give back and support spinal cord research. Spinal cord injuries must become curable.

My Minimum target goal is to raise at least £10 per mile raced 140.6 miles = £1406.00 for Wings for life. In saying this I would really love to smash this figure out the park 🤞🏼

Wings for Life is a not-for-profit spinal cord research foundation. Our mission is to find a cure for spinal cord injury. We fund world-class scientific research and clinical trials around the globe aimed at healing the injured spinal cord.   

Support us in achieving our goal.

100% guarantee

£1 DONATION = £1 FOR SPINAL CORD RESEARCH

Progress in spinal cord research is largely driven by private funding. Wings for Life is dependent on donations from individuals and companies. 100% of all donations are used for research purposes because all administrative costs are kindly covered by the Red Bull Company.

Ironman Wales is one of the hardest one-day endurance race in the world, covering 140.6 miles from start to finish. The race typically starts at 7:00 a.m.; the mandatory swim cut off for the swim is 9:20 a.m. (2 hours 20 minutes), the mandatory bike cut off time is 5:30 p.m. (8 hours 10 minutes), and the mandatory marathon cut off is midnight (6 hours 30 minutes). If you don’t finish in the timescales you are disqualified from the race resulting in a DNF.

IRONMAN Wales begins on Tenby's North Beach, with a 2.4 mile open water sea swim which provides one of the most spectacular swim locations on the race circuit. Despite Tenby's challenging 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run courses, athletes are treated to consistent and motivating inspiration from some of the most vocal and enthusiastic spectators in endurance sports. 

I’ve been fortunate enough to have support from my long term sponsor @Blazingbikes my Gym @love2liveshrops and clothing brand @cantquitcartel.

Please take a minute and check theses guys out as without there help putting this program together may not have been possible!  

You can follow my journey, training/progress and the people that are supporting me on my social media. instagram; @loosekidmx, Twitter; @benllewellyn39 and Facebook Ben Llewellyn.

I work hard, I never give up, 100% of the money raised will go to Wings for life.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.