On Sunday, 4th August I will be taking part in RIde London 100.

Update: Had a great day yesterday - lovely weather and a great atmosphere. While I missed my personal target of 7 hours elapsed by 70 seconds I'm not too bothered by this and can blame congestion at the drinks stops. For those of you who wanted proof some pictures are already on-line at http://www7.marathon-photos.com/scripts/event.py?template=MPX2&event=Sports/CPUK/2013/Prudential%20RideLondon-Surrey%20100&new_search=1&match=8160

....and thanks again to all of you for your generosity.

... and I don't know my position - the web-site makes it difficult to rank times as "it's not a race" - but it was definitely better than 16,543rd as only 15,883 finished and the slowest were two hours behind me!

I don't claim this as any great feat of athletic prowess or stamina. I enjoy cycling and am looking forward to what is essentially the first London Marathon for bikes: starting from the Olympic Park and roughly following the route of last Summer's Olympic Road Race into Surrey, up and down Box Hill and back into London to finish on The Mall. All on closed roads in the company of 19,999 other riders.

PIcture me crossing the line, arms aloft, after an epic sprint for 16,453rd place, the Queen smiling on the palace balcony and the Red Arrows roaring overhead.

Having admitted that I am doing this for pleasure, it seems a shame not to use all this energy to do something worthwhile - and that something is raising money for http://prostatecanceruk.org/

In very crude terms, prostate cancer is to men what breast cancer is to women. About one in eight men will have prostate cancer at some time in their lives, just as one in eight women will have breast cancer. But while both men and women like breasts many people do not even know what the prostate does and even in the 21st century male plumbing is not discussed in polite society. "Prostate problems" are seen as something between an embarrassment and a joke. The result is a lack of funding for research and a lack of effective treatments.

Earlier this year Roger Davison, who from the age of 18 until I married nearly ten years later was my closest friend, died from cancer.This was complicated, but it started in the prostate.

Your donation can fund research to improve survival rates in the future. I am hoping to raise at least £2,500 and to help things along my company, Alithos, will match the first £500 given.

Thanks for reading this - please give generously.