Thank you for taking the time to do this.  It's really appreciated.

Update 26th May - huge thanks for helping me to achieve my initial target of £500.  I have, like all good budgets given this a 50% uplift given I've not even completed the first ride yet.  In the meantime training continues apace.

I'll keep it simple - what am I doing?

What I'm not doing is falling asleep in a dreamy drunken haze which is how I normally prefer to spend my summers - picture evidence provided.

Instead, I am completing two sponsored bike rides one month apart on the 4th June and 4th July totalling 138 miles.  I've grouped these together rather than ask you for money twice. The first is 78 miles from Manchester to Derby.  The second is 60 miles from Manchester to Blackpool.

Why? 

Because a) raising money for Alzheimers is a great motivation to get on the bike at 5am, and b) I really need to get fit.

More pertinently, it is likely that for those of us that make it past 65, 1 in 3 of us will be affected by dementia. 

Over 700,000 people have dementia in the UK, this figure will rise to over 1 million by 2025.

If I reach my target that will pay for 5 brain scans to support research in to the reasons for dementia as part of ongoing clinical trials.

Thanks again,

Martin