FURNITURE MAKERS CYCLE RIDE, AXMINSTER TO LONDON 2021

Five intrepid Furniture Makers are cycling from Axminster to London to raise funds for the Step 2 It campaign to provide welfare for those in need in all aspects of the furniture and furnishings industry.

The riders are Paul von der Heyde, Ben Burbidge, Hayden Davies, Alan Styles and Peter Hooper. David Dewing will be driving the support van. Paul, David, Ben and Hayden are all Past Masters, Alan is CEO of Axminster Tools and a Corporate Liveryman and Peter is an experienced long-distance cyclist who has been a great encouragement in past rides. Paul, Ben, Hayden and Peter all completed both the London to Bordeaux Furniture Makers' ride organised by Ben in 2016 and the Mount Ventoux ride organised by Hayden in 2018.

This will be a somewhat gentler ride of around 200 miles, starting from Axminster on Friday 18th June and arriving at Furniture Makers' hall on Sunday 20th June. The route will follow minor roads passing Yeovil, Salisbury, Farnham and Kingston, with two overnight stops near Salisbury and Godalming. We expect and hope other riders will join us for up to a day.

The ride is organised by the South West Region of the Furniture Makers' Company. Our target towards Step 2 It is £10,000. Axminster Tools has already signed up as a major sponsor, and the Master has made a generous first Pledge. Please show your support by donating as much as you can to this team effort. Five riders completing 200 miles adds up to 1,000 miles. Taking an average of 2,000 steps to a mile, this means the team is travelling a combined distance of 2,000,000 steps! That's a lot in anyone's book, so please be generous, sign up now and cheer the team on.