I have done a few rides for charity before and I have to confess up till now I have done it for me, I have wanted to enjoy a nice ride in the sun.

This year is different. In February this year Alastair McNair my father in law died completely unexpectedly at the age of 60 from a heart condition. In the space of 2 hours he went from being with us to never being a part of our lives again.

This hugely affected me, my wife, my mother in law, my brothers in law and the rest of the family.

I have now decided to try and raise £1000 for the British Heart Foundation in the hope that they can stop this happenning for as many families as possible.

I am doing 2 rides this year, The London to Brighton Ride and also a Nightride that is 100km through the middle of London in the middle of the night. I think the night ride is going to be a real challenge as I am not good at staying up late.

Please give as generously as you can. This cause really means a lot to me this year and I will be thinking of Alastair for the 110 miles or so that I'll be riding to raise this money.

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.