It’s that time of year again when I ask you to put your hands in your pockets and donate to a very worthwhile cause in return for me subjecting myself to physical and mental torment.

I’m riding in the CLIC24 again this year - a 24 hour mountain bike race over a 10 mile off road course in the Mendips near Bristol. I've done this event since 2005 and in these last three years myself and a couple of mates have raised over £6,000 for CLIC Sargent between us. CLIC Sargent provides much needed support for the families of children with cancer and leukaemia and does fantastic work during very difficult times.

Last year was a nightmare as the course suffered a deluge of rain in the week leading up to it. During the race everyone in our team suffered major fatigue and mechanical problems – 3 sets of gears broke, one of my mate’s front forks seized, 2 sets of brakes stopped working, and a rear derailleur fell off.  Given all that I was glad that we simply stuck at it until the bitter end (quite a few teams gave up during the night) as it was truly brutal!

This year (weather permitting) we are hoping to exceed the highlights from 2006 which included:

 - climbing, and also descending of course, a total of 26,600 feet - 50 feet short of the 9th highest mountain in the world - Nanga Parbat in Pakistan (eclipsing the previous years effort of reaching the 22nd highest mountain in the world).  This year's target is Everest!

- covering 260 miles - the distance from London to Reims or more obscurely from Oklahoma City to Amarillo. 

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: CLIC will receive your money faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.

So please sponsor me now!

Many thanks for your support.

Cheers,  James