Thank you so much to everyone who have so generously donated so far through this page. Without you guys, there is no change.

Hi Here is a run down of my event. I hope it entertains you.

Monday 3 January 2011.

I started my journey from Big Ben in Westminster at 11.00am. This being my first long distance cycling event it turned out to be a steep learning curve. I got my first puncture as I was getting out of London. When I stopped to change the inner tube I was unable to loosen the nut to remove the wheel. Luckily I stopped in a good place. A young man came out of his flat and he offered to drive me to a bike shop where I got the bike sorted and off I went again. Without this mans generosity I would not have made it out of London! I have made a new friend! I finished my days ride in Dartford where I spent the night in a Holiday inn.

Tuesday 4 January 2011.

I started my days ride going over the exit of the Dartford Bridge at 7.00am. A good steady ride all day I found it much harder today than I thought it would be. The winds were stronger than I expected them to be, I felt relieved to arrive at my hostel in Dover around 16:00.

Wednesday 5 2011.

I set off from the Hostel around 8 am after a good breakfast. I feel a little dwarfed waiting to board the ferry lining up with the cars and coaches. I wave goodbye to the white cliffs of Dover. My invasion of France begins and I am delighted at how smooth and quiet the D940 coastal road is. My legs are beginning to feel the burn on the incline. Some Beautiful Scenery and some great downhill runs too. I get too Bouloign sur mar at 15:00 and it begins to rain. Determined to get to Abbeville I press on but after around 15 Kilometres I wished I hadn’t. I lost the light completely, I took an inland road thinking it would be more direct without knowing how steep some of the hills would be, it was raining hard the roads were busy and there was nowhere to walk the bike. To make things worse I was 20 km away from the next town. Luckily I came across a sign for a hotel 4km off route. I made a pathetic attempt of asking for a room in French before the man said “ ah you are English, please come in.” I was now running a day behind, and I was down to my last clean pair of boxer shorts but all joking aside I had the best 3 course meal of my life and made another new friend, a Dutch guy called Pascal.

Thursdays 6 2011

, compared to Wednesday the ride was pretty un-eventful. I set off at 8:00 in the morning, After some advice from Pascal I headed west back onto the coastal road which is fairly flat all the way to Abbeville. I covered a lot of ground early on which got me into Abbeville at 14:00.although it rained all day and the wind was once again another hurdle I had to push through, I was very happy with my progress.

Friday 7 2011.

Abbeville to Beauvais. After riding 5 miles on the right road in the wrong direction and spending around an hour looking for a replacement pump I finally get going out of Abbeville around 9:30. I battle on all day and there are some incredibly steep hills along the way. Once again the rain and wind are a pain. At one point I stopped and the wind was actually blowing me backwards! I arrive in Beauvais 15:30.

Saturday 8 2011

Beauvais to Paris. Left the hotel at 8:15. Powered my way to Paris. Somehow I ended up on an E road for section of it which is their motorway, little bit naughty with lots of people beeping at me. At one point I had three police vans drive past me. Thankfully there was no room for them to stop otherwise I would have got a telling off im sure. Arrived in Paris around 15:30. I reached the Eiffle Tower and I felt a wave of happiness and self accomplishment. I Had the biggest grin on my face for around half an hour.

Summary

There are lots of things I would do differently to make it easier on myself if I were doing the ride again. Lack of planning turned out to be a frustration, getting lost and poor quality kit another. I find long distance cycling incredibly rewarding. Even through the toughest climbs, I know that my situation is only temporary just as I had learnt as a child. I have learnt many lessons from this event and I am know on the lookout for my next adventure.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

January 3rd when some of you will still be recovering from New Years Eve, I will hit the road to Paris on a push bike to raise money for The National Association for Children of Alchoholics (NACOA)

I recently spoke to someone after i launched this page and they said "great idea mate but iv never heard of NACOA before."

How when there are an estimated 1,000,000 children in the UK alone living with Alchoholic Parents, do we have such little understanding of the nightmare some of theses children have to deal with?

Children living with Alchoholics will more often than not be exposed to fits of rage, unprovoced anger, domestic violence and will have to grow up far too quickly to fend for themselves.

All this comes at a time when a child just wants to fit in and be "normal". How can they be a kid when they have to look after themselves, and more often than not, their parents?

Christmas is usually the worst time of year for children of Alchoholics because Parents have plenty of time off work. Many children will be physicaly abused over the christmas period and will not enjoy christmas like the rest of us.

Many of these children will witness domestic violence on a regular basis and will recieve no support from their parents, who are in denial of there alchoholic illness.

The Charity 

The NACOA (National Association for Children of Alchoholics)

Research reveals familial alcoholism can affect all areas of a child’s life, from school life through to behavioural problems and compulsive disorders.

So many are exposed to rage, violence and abuse on a daily basis, which become part of the unpredictable and inconsistent environment in which they live.

Research indicates that domestic violence is six times more common when parents suffer from alcoholism.

There are an estimated nearly 1,000,000 children living with Alchoholic dependant parents. 

What they do

They offer information, advice and support to children of alcohol-dependent parents.

They reach professionals who work with these children.

They are raising the profile of children of alcohol-dependent parents in the public consciousness.

They promote research into:

The particular problems faced by those who grow up with parental alcoholism .

The prevention of alcoholism developing in this vulnerable group of children.

The Event

Please check back regularly for updates and pictures of this event.

This is an independantly organised event i have organised myself. I have chosen my own route and time frame.

Conditions are looking good. Have bought myself a cheap racing bike for the ride.

On Monday 3rd January 2011, Starting at Westminster clock, London England I will ride a bycicle to the Eiffle Tower in Paris, France.

 The total journey distance will be approximately 270 miles or 434 km and i will reach Paris within 5 days or less depending on conditions. 

I will be updating this page and my Facebook page with pictures of the ride each evening of the event.

Itinerary

Day 1: London to Gillingham – 33.9 miles

The Challenge begins bright and early from London heading south en route to the coast.  

Day 2: Gillingham to Dover 41.7 miles  

Day 3: Calais to Abbeville 69 miles

La belle France! Stunning picturesque countryside awaits  in northern France. 

Day 4: Abbeville to Beauvais  54 miles

Route follows the river Somme out of Abbeville.  

Day 5: Beauvais to Paris 45 miles   

Final day of cycling and the big push to Paris, the final destination.  

Without you guys there is no change. Without your help my efforts are wasted.

"It is impossible to do something nice for someone else, and not feel good yourself" Zig Ziglar

If you are going to donate money to charity, Just Giving is the best place to do it. 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 - raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.