After an incredible 2015 of fundraising for Olive's Fund and Great Ormond Street Hospital, I've been thinking about what challenge to set myself that will be worthy of you digging deep and donating what you can to this page. I've become hooked on cycling (you may have noticed) since completing RideLondon–Surrey 100 mile ride last summer, so I've upped the stakes and the challenge for 2016 is three fold (see details below).

These three cycling challenges total approximately 635km and 8600m of climbing. I've been training and riding since November to prepare including regular 2-hour hills sessions before work on Wednesdays, long rides at least twice a month (my longest so far 205km in March) and commuting into work (a 35km round trip).

I want to make this second year special and I hope I can count on your support. For you Olive x

CHALLENGE 1 > COMPLETED
Tour de Yorkshire Sportive
1 May 2016
The Tour de Yorkshire Sportive ride is the unique opportunity to experience the Tour de France atmosphere and to pave the way for the professional riders. The sportive will take place on the same day and roads as the 3rd and final stage of the Tour de Yorkshire pro ride.

This 120km (75 miles) ride with 1,540m (5,050ft) of climbing will loop out from Scarborough taking in the stunning North York Moors. It will be a testing start to the three-event challenge I’ve set myself – the Yorkshire pudding food stations will help.

CHALLENGE 2 > COMPLETED
Rapha Cycling Club (RCC) Yorkshire 3-day Tour
18–20 July 2016
Following in the pedal strokes of the Rapha Continental which took place on 23 June 2014, a group of us will take three days to explore the Howardian Hills, the North York Moors, and the Yorkshire Dales. A beautiful and challenging adventure totalling 355km (221 miles) and 5,620m (18,438ft) of climbing. That's the equivalent of two-thirds of Mount Everest.

This RCC Yorkshire 3-day Tour will take place between 18–20 July, starting in York and finishing in Skipton. There'll be a group of us from Team Olive and my new RCC club mates. We'll be hoping to experience something similar to this:

http://pages.rapha.cc/rides/yorkshire

CHALLENGE 3
RideLondon–Surrey 100
31 July 2016
Feels fitting that I round off this years challenge where it started last year. RideLondon–Surrey 100 was an amazing experience and a unique closed-road event. Starting in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and ending on The Mall taking in stunning scenery on the way with 25,000 other riders – with a few of the original OM riders included.

This last leg of the challenge will total 160km (100 miles) and 1,440m (4,593ft) of climbing. The Mall finish will be a brilliant finale.

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Olive's story – http://olivemartin.org
It will be two years since we lost our beautiful Olive to an unfixable heart defect. We miss her everyday but her legacy through her Brighter Future Fund that supports Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity will give other kids a fighting chance when facing similar life-changing events.

We have raised over £26,000 (as of 1st Jan 2016) since the fund was created in Sept 2015 for kids with heart defects, be magnificent if we can get to £35,000 by the end of 2016. With your help we can do it.

The fund has already bought a £9,000 TOE heart probe and £10,000 towards ground-breaking heart research. To support the major redevelopments at GOSH, we have allocated the rest of the Fund for 2016 towards the creation of a new specialist cardiac unit dedicated to tackling heart failure in children. 

The new 14 bed unit (due to open in 2017) will provide the foundations and infrastructure for world-leading experts to provide first class clinical care for children with heart failure and lead a pioneering programme of research focused on developing new and better devices that can give children more time while waiting for a life-saving transplant.

Olive’s Fund is enabling GOSH make the improvements necessary at the hospital, so please support and give generously.

Thank you,
Paul