Story
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB">In order to defy my 50<sup>th</sup> birthday, I wanted to undertake a significant challenge in order to raise funds for charity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A number of us were in the same position and after many beers and much discussion, I agreed to cycle from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean over the Pyrenees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This route is 720km long and entails some 11,000m of ascent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The route will take in most of the big</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";" lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB">cols including a number used in the Tour de France.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if that wasn’t challenging enough, the organisers stipulate that you must complete the route within 100 hours!! Oh, and I only took up road cycling in January!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not sure if this is a case of madness or Mamils (Middle Aged Men in Lycra)!! </span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: small;">There are 5 of us (Howard Seymour, David Reed, Dave Martin, Alan McGeen and myself) undertaking the journey between 7th and 11th June 2011 and each of us has selected our own charity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have chosen Kate’s Home Nursing which is a charity based in the Cotswolds, set up to help patients and their families in their own home through the last stages of illness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It isn’t always possible to fulfil a patient’s wish to die at home, but this is where Kate’s Home Nursing steps in, and working as part of a team with the local GPs and District Nurses, provides professional specialist nursing care. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The goal of palliative care is the achievement of the best quality of life for patients. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have witnessed, through the recent loss of a family member, the excellent work they undertake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their web site can be found at </span><a title="blocked::http://www.kateshomenursing.org/" href="http://www.kateshomenursing.org/"><span style="font-size: small; color: #800080;">www.kateshomenursing.org</span></a><span style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: small;">All costs of the trip are being paid for by us and therefore all funds raised will go direct to Kate’s Home Nursing. You can follow my exploits in advance of the journey and on the ride itself through a blog site that I have set up at </span><a href="http://www.timmaynard50.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-size: small; color: #800080;">www.timmaynard50.blogspot.com</span></a><span style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: small;">Thank you in advance for your generous support.</span></span></p>
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