This June I'll be taking part in the 2019 edition of the Fireflies Tour, which takes a merry band of cyclists through the Alps, tackling some of the most famous (i.e. downright fiendish) climbs in the cycling world, on the way down to Cannes. The whole tour is now in its 19th running, so I'm privileged to be involved.  This year we'll be starting in Innsbruck, Austria, and all we know is that we'll definitely be dragging ourselves up the iconic Passo Dello Stelvio, which once featured in an episode of Top Gear no less.

Every day myself and my fellow riders will be cycling around 100 miles and climbing 3500m - it's basically like doing the hardest stages of the Tour de France every day for one whole week. 

Training will be long, and the ride will be extremely hard, but it's all in aid of the amazing charity, Bloodwise. Our pain is nothing compared with what sufferers of blood cancer have to go through, so our aim is to do all we can to help raise funds to facilitate more research into a cure. The charity is at the heart of the whole trip, which is why the Fireflies motto is 'for those who suffer, we ride'.

It's going to hurt, especially after Christmas over-indulgence, so please do give generously, and I'll promise to send you lots of photos of me at the top of pretty mountains in very tight cycling clothes. I may even break a smile from time to time.

Thanks so much,

Simon

P.S. THIS TRIP IS ENTIRELY SELF-FUNDED. NONE OF THE MONEY RAISED ON THIS PAGE WILL GO TOWARDS FLIGHTS OR ACCOMMODATION, AND INSTEAD WILL GO DIRECT TO THE CHARITY AND THOSE WHO NEED IT.