12/7/13: With the current heatwave, it's been interesting getting used to my new hair length, as it's much harder to manage in the heat. I've also been getting in some sprint training, during the hottest part of the day. Not necessarily most sensible thing but with three weeks to go to the big day, need to get used to the fact it could be one hot ride.

23/6/13: Two weeks on from my last update, I've managed two training rides at a distance of 56 miles for each. both rides were very different. the first was a very hilly course in very windy conditions, making it a very good work out and practice for the actual event should it be poor conditions on the day. the second training ride was a slightly flatter ride and the conditions were a lot better, making it a good different work out to my first training ride. on both training rides I'm managing to start to get my speed up and maintain it so am hopeful of achieving my target time. My hair continues to grow and it will be interesting to see people at work after two weeks tomorrow.

9/6/13: Big 94 mile training ride today with lots of climbing, good to get in such a big ride with such a short time to the big one. My hair is getting longer. see my latest pic for how I looked at the end of my training ride and my hair length.

21/5/13: Been lots of different training rides going in recently, from speed sessions to longer climbing sessions. Most recently on Sunday just gone, I did an 83 mile training ride, that started with a 15 mile speed session, followed by a 60 mile climb session, with 8 miles of flat to relax back home. so training going well.

21/4/13: It's been one intense training week. Around 150 miles covered, as I up my number of cycles to work. then training ride today; covering just under 95 miles. as you can see from my latest photo you can see my hair is getting longer and colleagues at work are occasionally styling it for me.

26/3/13: An interesting week, a 45 mile training cycle in the snow and on flooded roads at the weekend. then baking cakes for our purple day bake sale, which took place today. with good funds raised.

As well as doing the Ride London 100. I'm now also growing my hair until the event, in the hope of raising more money as I'm more accustomed to very short hair as you can see from my picture.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Why Epilepsy Society; I was first diagnosed with mild epilepsy in my early teens and I've had several different tests over the last 20 years to help improve the treatment I receive. In those 20 years I’ve also seen a lot of changes in the treatments that are available. I know that these treatments can only continue to improve and develop, if the funds are available to investigate whether they work or not. The other thing to say is that the information that is now available to explain epilepsy and what to do in the event of seizures was not available when I was first diagnosed and now we have a wide range of leaflets and support lines available for people to call, for this to continue vital funds need to be continually raised.

More about me; I’ve worked now for the Epilepsy Society for 5 and a half years, seeing lots of changes, this another reason for me wanting to ride with the purple riders as I’ve seen both sides of the coin, from a patient perspective and a carer’s perspective.

The challenge: I’ve been riding for several years and now cycle on average 3 times a week to work, doing a 30 mile round trip. However I’ve never ridden as far as 100 miles. I’m also attempting to cycle the 100 miles on a mountain bike which some people seem to thing can’t be done.

THEN MY BIGGEST CHALLENGE I’M ATTEMPTING TO COMPLETE IT IN 6 HOURS.

SO PLEASE GIVE GENEROUSLY FOR SOMEONE WHO IS GOING THE EXTRA MILE FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS TO CONTINUE TO RECIEVE THE TREATMENT AND SUPPORT THAT HAS DEVELOPED AND IS CONTINUING TO IMPROVE FOR THE YEARS TO COME.

Please don’t forget to give, gift aid, as this will allow the Epilepsy Society to claim at least 25% of your donation from the Inland Revenue and this can make all the difference. Because when this alone is added up it can mean big things but it only works if you donate first

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 and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.