I am planning to cycle from John O'Groats to Lands End over the course of a week to raise money for The Brain Tumour Charity. Those of you who know me would probably agree that I'm not in any way built for either cycling or endurance, so why on earth put myself through such a challenge?!

On New Years Day 2017 I had a call from the wife of one of my best friends. Kate told me that Simon Fookes had been admitted to hospital suddenly and after several tests had been diagnosed with a brain tumour. He had emergency surgery and the worst was confirmed; Simon had a grade 4 Glioblastoma.

Simon has had numerous rounds of chemotherapy and radiotherapy here in England and has also been to Germany to try immunotherapy treatment. As things stand he still has cancer in his brain.

Many of you will know Simon, but for those of you who don't I'll give a bit of background. He has a wife (Kate) and two children Jake (14) and Jess (10). He is one of the kindest people I have ever come across and one of life's true gentlemen. When I moved out of London to this new area nearly 5 years ago, he was one of the first people I met. He instantly made me feel welcome and took it upon himself to introduce me to lots of his friends that I had things in common with - a real mate.

For any of you who know Simon and don't know me, I'm certainly NOT a cyclist! Prior to March I don't think I'd been on a bike in 20 years. It turns out my upper body acts like a sail and my bum isn't designed for hours in the saddle! Regardless, I've chosen to take on this challenge - one of 125 miles per day over 7 days (that's roughly 9/10 hours a day on the bike) to raise as much money as possible for the charity of Simon's choice.

That charity is The Brian Tumour Charity.

The Brain Tumour Charity is at the forefront of the fight to defeat brain tumours, making a difference every day to the lives of people with a brain tumour and their families. We fund pioneering research to increase survival, raise awareness of the symptoms and effects of brain tumours and provide support for everyone affected to improve quality of life. We are committed to having the biggest possible impact for every person affected by a brain tumour, and to defending the most amazing part of the human body.

Please give as much as you can, either out of love and respect for Simon or perhaps to acknowledge the struggle that a man of over 17 stone is going to face during the first week of July!

Thanks in advance,

Tim