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I have taken the plunge and signed up to cycle 350km over five days in India for charity!  The cycle ride starts in Agra and finishes in Jaipur. 

My challenge will be not only to raise over £3,000 for the three charities - Breast Cancer Care, Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust and Ovarian Cancer Action but also to get fit enough to cycle 350km around India!

This will be a huge challenge as I have not been on a bike for almost 15 years!  The next 12 months will be spent training on and off road around Exmoor and North Devon.  For those of you who know the area, this will be no mean feat!

In addition, I will be trying to raise sponsorship and donations to meet my target.  This will no doubt involve making even more jars of marmalade and granola to sell - thank you Southcliffe Guests in advance!  I will be funding my own expenses, ie flights, accommodation etc so all donations and sponsorship will go directly to the charities.

Hopefully I will have a few other fundraising ideas over the course of the year which will help me reach my target.  I will update my Just Giving Page as time goes on. 

Dec 11 - I have given up on the idea of buying a bike just yet. Being realistic, the thought of cycling on Exmoor during winter is not particularly appealing.  So, for the time being, I have started Spinning Classes in Ilfracombe and will get my bike in the Spring. Spinning classes are hard!!

Andy and I have been coming up with some fund raising ideas.  It looks like our first one will be a car boot sale.  A good opportunity to have a good clear out and make some money for my fund.  Although a 6am start is not much fun this time of year!  Lots of coffee and chocolate needed!

Jan 12 - Had a brilliant boost to my fund raising today!  We cleared our loft of things we thought would make a good car boot.  Part of our clearout involved hundreds of CDs which we have accumulated over many years. We saw a local advert for someone who bought CDs and vinyls and got in touch.  A very nice man came round today and bought the lot!  Still going to do a car boot sale if weather permits with our remaining bits and bobs - I can't believe there is still so much stuff!  Good opportunity for a clear out - New Year etc!!

Andy and I went to London at the weekend so that I could attend the information day.  It was nice to meet so many lovely ladies who I will be cycling India with!  It was a very emotional but uplifting meeting as we heard from ladies who had been affected by cancer and had received incredible support from the three charities we are raising money for.  These charities are not huge cash rich ones.  The money we raise goes to increasing awareness of these cancers and providing support to those affected.

The Lyn Lions have agreed that I can help them out at the Adult Only Panto at the Town Hall on Saturday!  I will be waitressing and clearing tables.  Hopefully picking up some donations along the way.  Should be an interesting evening....

It was an interesting evening!  Not much money raised, never mind! I don't think the audience quite understood what I was doing!  I think they thought it was a free service! Still, I helped the Lions clear alot of glasses, bottles and cans.  It was a long night.....

On a brighter note, I am having a Coffee Morning here at Southcliffe on 14th February! Much more my cup of tea.  I have been promised lots of cakes to sell, so if anyone is in Lynton on Valentines Day, pop in!

Feb 12 Just had a lovely donation from the Lyn Lions today!  Fundraising is hard, but it is so nice when you get a big boost to funds. Thank you Lyn Lions x

Andy and I have been making loads of cakes for the Coffee Morning next week.  We have also had lots of cakes made for us by our local friends and donations to the raffle too.  Just hope we have a few people show up - otherwise we have a lot of cake to eat!!

Feb 14th - The Coffee Morning was a great success!  We raised £258 from the raffle, sales of coffee and cake and donations!  Most of the cakes were sold or eaten, so not many left for us to finish off!  I am still amazed how supportive and generous people have been.  Especially people who donated raffle prizes, baked cakes and gave up their free time to help me.  Thank you all so much. xxx

March 16th - The ladies of the Lyn Valley WI are helping arrange a Quiz Night in April.  Date to be confirmed! Hopefully we will have plenty of time to get the advertising in place so that we can get lots of people to come along. 

I have been able to get out on my bike for a couple of 20 mile cycles along the Tarka Trail.  I have yet to take up the Countisbury Hill challenge - or even Station Hill! As there is no way of getting out of Lynton without cycling up a hill, I will have to face one of them soon!

Thank you to all our lovely guests who have been so generous in sponsoring me on my Just Giving page.  I really do appreciate it.  £2,800 seems like so much money to raise, but I am half way there.! Thank you all. 

April 12 - I have been out training on the hills!  I went on the back roads out towards Hunters Inn from home.  I cycled about 12 miles which was a good start to the serious training I thought!  Yesterday (Sunday 1st April), Andy dropped me off in Ilfracombe (having been shopping!) and I cycled back.  That ride was just short of 20 miles and took me two and a half hours.  I did cut through to Hunters Inn and resisted stopping for a drink! However, I do have to admit to walking up the 1 in 20 hill!  Although I may have pretended to be cycling when any cars drove past!  That is one long hill.  No ill effects today, so that can't be bad!

Still trying to find a venue for the Quiz night.  Hopefully I shall be able to get something arranged soon. Thank you again to my friends and our guests who have been so generous in sponsoring me.  I really appreciate it so much - thank you xxx

I am wondering about organising a fete!  As the coffee morning was such a success, I thought about having coffee and cakes and a few stalls across the road at the URC Hall.  Things like guess the weight of the cake, name the teddy, and a white elephant stall.  I shall have to see if I can hire the hall and enlist some help!

Also, the local school is holding a fundraising car boot sale in The Valley of Rocks in May.  If I can get away in time (from housekeeping duties!!) I will try and sell some stuff there and raise a few pounds. It would be a double whammy as it would help the local school too!

May 12 - Still waiting to hear if I can hire the hall across the road.  I have some excellent fundraising ideas - only problem is getting people to come along to them!  I thought about Caberet Rouge, from the WAMBAM Club in London.  We saw them perform a few months ago and they were great fun!  Then, there is always hiring a band and having a music evening, with a few candles and nibbles!  I have a friend coming round tomorrow who is an ace fundraising ideas person! Here's to a productive brain storming session!!

Training has been a bit lax of late! I blame the weather and the fact I haven't got a waterproof jacket! Still, needs must, so I will be back out on my wheels again in the next few days.  I had an excellent idea to cycle to Porlock Weir.  Andy could meet me there in the car and we could have a well deserved pint and chips! Here's hoping!

I had a fabulous cycle from Lynton towards Porlock Weir.  The road is fairly undulating but nothing to scary.  I stopped for lunch at County Gate and came back via Brendon and Rockford, and through to Hillsford Bridge.  Andy very kindly came and picked me up (not literally, although it was close) from Lynmouth.  The whole ride was about 20 miles. 

I have just got back from doing the car boot sale in the Valley of Rocks.  I have made £26 after paying £5 entrance.  Not bad!

July 12 - I have been taking my bike in the car to Barnstaple and cycling along the Tarka Trial.  It has been better to get some hours in the saddle rather than short cycles around Lynton.  My last ride was about 37 miles which was lovely.  However, putting the bike into the car unfortuantely hurt my back a couple of weeks ago, so training has been put on hold.  I succumbed to medical intervention last week and saw a Doctor!  Unfortunately the painkillers didn't agree with me so I was back to square one.  I then saw a Sports Massage Therapist who cracked and manipulated me - alot.  The good news is I am on the mend and hope to be back in the saddle this week.  I guess it will take a bit of time to build up the mileage again, but, back allowing, I will be up to speed in no time!

My fundraiser at the Cottage Inn in Lynbridge is coming together.  Lots of people have promised to come along so it should be a brilliant evening. Hopefully, lots of money will be raised for my charities.

Play it or Nail it Night went well on Saturday Many thanks to all the people who volunteered their services and helped organise the event, and of course to the Cottage Inn for letting us take over the pub for the evening! Lots of people came along to play or nail some records and it was great fun. We haven't counted every penny yet, but it looks like we raised about £350 for the charities below. Nailed records were Bay City Rollers, Queen, Dire Straits, Rod Stewart, Max Bygraves, Sound of Music and Barry Manilow. Played were The Police, Spandau Ballet, Bonnie Tyler, Bruce Springsteen, Europe, Adam and the Ants and Abba. DJ Juan had to use his veto to nail the Bay City Rollers instead of playing it, which means that quite a lot of people voted for it to be played . . . you know who you are!

Less than a week to go till I fly out from Heathrow to Delhi.  I am getting a coach from Barnstaple to Heathrow which is the first part of the adventure.  Hopefully once at Heathrow I shall meet the other ladies who are taking part in this challenge.  Then once in India, we travel to Agra.  We have a day free for bike fitting and time for a visit to the Taj Mahal!  Then it is five days of cycling! A well earned rest in Jaipur and hopefully time to do a bit of shopping and sightseeing before returning back to Delhi and then back home on Sunday .

Thank you to everyone who has sponsored me and supported me in my fundraising.  I am amazed at the amount I have been able to raise, but of course all this would not have been possible without Andy, my fabulous husband and my brilliant friends and our wonderful guests!  Thank you all xxxxxx

Thanks again for all the support and encouragement from our guests, friends and those kind people who have sponsored me so generously who I have yet to meet.   Keeps me going!

x

Sue

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