Thanks for visiting our fundraising page.

We are a mother and son team planning to raise as much  as we can for Macmillan Cancer Support by heading to the French Alps for 5 days in September to take on the somewhat daunting challenge of six of the toughest cycling ascents made famous by the Tour de France.

Just mentioning the names of the Cols we will need to conquer- Aravis, Saisies, Madeleine, Telegraphe, Galibier and Alpe D'Huez - is enough to make even hardened cycling pros choke on their Lucozade Sport. And we are definitely not hardened cyclists.

Helen came to cycling rather late in life having been persuaded by a friend (thank you Sue!) to do London to Paris for Macmillan in 2008 (see how we got on at www.justgiving.com/helenandsue1 ) and having been bitten by the bug has barely been off her bike since.  James is actually an oarsman at heart having rowed at school and more recently for his University, until bowing to the inevitable and giving up the river in favour of the physics lab for his final year-conveniently leaving lots of time free for cycling!

With the build of a lightweight, James is potentially a formidable force on the hills and threatens to leave his poor old mother standing. But he knows the deal; she 'll buy all the beers from the rolling valleys outside Bonneville where they start, to the twenty-one hair pin bends up Alpe d'Huez where they finish, provided he stays with her! 

So why are we doing it?  Most people know something of the work that Macmillan do supporting people with cancer. By providing practical help- nursing, information and advice- Macmillan helps families deal with the emotional stress and physical symptoms cancer causes.  800 people are diagnosed with cancer everyday in UK and Macmillan can offer help to half of them. Wouldn't it be great if the service could be offered them all?

Please dig deep and give as generously as you can to support this excellent cause and follow both our fundraising and training progress on this site.

Donating through Justgiving is quick, easy and totally secure. It’s also the most efficient way to sponsor us: Macmillan Cancer Support gets your money faster and, if you’re a UK taxpayer, Justgiving makes sure 25% in Gift Aid, plus a 3% supplement, are added to your donation.

Thank you.

WE MADE IT!  and what a great 3 days cycling we had.  It was hard work at times and there were moments when we thought the climbs would never end (Madeleine definitely wins the prize for beastliness!) but we honestly enjoyed every single moment and the different challenges that each day brought. Our strategy for the 6 cols was simple- slow and steady, and for the long descents even simpler- wheeeeee.....! We weren't the fastest in the group, but equally weren't the slowest and certainly have to be amongst the top performers for cheerful smiles and matching accessories. The following link is to an article written by one of our fellow cyclists 

http://cyclotherapy.independentminds.livejournal.com/

and gives an idea of what the ride was like. We feel privileged to have been part of this challenge (a first for Macmillan) and by taking part raising money for such an excellent cause. Many thanks again to all of our supporters-your generosity will make a big difference to people with cancer through the work of Macmillan. Thank you.

2 weeks to go .....and the team is relieved that a brace of Polaris Pods has arrived, so at least the bikes should arrive at the starting line in one piece. Cycling in Herefordshire was an exhausting eye opener.  Some pretty serious, steep climbs and almost certainly what lies in store in the Alps.  Helen is now wondering if, with a little creative packing, she could actually fit a cycle rickshaw in one of the pods.  She can't see it would be any more challenging for James to climb the Alpe d'Huez with her in the back than to get up and over Garrett Hostel Lane with 3 well fed tourists on board, and clearly energy saving on her part. James has been covering lots of extra miles training-mainly cycling round in circles trying to navigate from Letchworth to Finsbury Park and back. All rather worrying as he had been nominated for navigational duties on the trip. This weekend is our last big training push, then it's just a few short rides until departure.  Small matter of the Great North Swim for Helen on 12th of course.....

4  weeks to go......and the biggest challenge at the moment is finding suitable bags to transport our bikes to Geneva in. Odd that there appears to be some national bike bag shortage.  Training's going well. James has been out with a friendly sounding cycle group in Cambridge- the Chain Gang-who have only one pace-fast and furious.  A ruthless group who don't wait for stragglers, James enjoyed the ride home. The team are off to Hereford today for 3 days of cycling up (and down) some welsh hills. Fingers crossed it won't be too wet and windy.  Thanks again to all our supporters-like us, our total is slowly climbing.

6 weeks to go....and training's hopefully on track.  James has had a week of arduous mental preparation (very important) on a sunny Spanish beach and is now in Germany, where he and Jo are cranking up some pretty impressive mileage. Helen continues to slog up and down Hexton Hill and Sharpenhoe Clappers and took the opportunity last weekend of showing Uncle Peter how it should be done. We hear he's almost recovered. Fund raising is going well-thank you everyone for your support, and for those of you who like maps here's one of where we will be cycling.  Looks quite straightforward in two dimensions....

www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Macmillan-Alps-Route-estimated

  

8 weeks to go.... and James continues to follow the alternate training plan. He's now back from Scotland feeling refreshed after some excellent climbing (left in photo 2) and has started work doing cycle tours of Cambridge.  Look out for the rickshaw doing in excess of 20mph down King's Parade then following the race line round the corner into Silver Street.  That will be James with his terrified tourist charges. Helen meanwhile continues to follow the prescribed plan, although yesterday's 45 miler was cut short at 36 due to technical problems (flat tyre) and the need to call the support vehicle for a ride home.  Made up the miles this morning, but hard to believe it's summer with the strong wind and driving rain. Fundraising going well with a batch of "Conquer the Alps" chutney in production as we speak.  Thank you to all our sponsors-we appreciate your generosity again.

10 weeks to go....... and Helen's been getting in some sneaky extra sessions with chief coach and training partner Fulch, whilst James is climbing in Scotland.  Excellent that the start of the other Tour de France gives the opportunity for some armchair sessions to pick up Top Tips from the professionals.  Pedal very hard and very fast would seem to cover it.  The following link 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbBSDtNXSxU

will take you to our final and most feared ascent -Alpe d"Huez. Surely can't be that much worse than Sharpenhoe Clappers....

14 weeks to go ...... and training is going well.  Finals over at last and the Team have just returned from training camp in Cornwall.  No shortage of hills there.  Fuelled by pasties and ice-cream we conquered a fair few Cornish Cols- including the 16% ascent out of Newlyn which certainly got the myocardium pumping and legs trembling. Unfortunately James had some pressing post exam social engagements so couldn't be there for the duration but still managed some pretty impressive cycling. Helen is learning to accept the physiological inevitabilty that no matter how hard she pedals, huffs and puffs, James will always go faster!

20 weeks to go..... and the training has moved up a gear (or two). James is still somewhat distracted by working for finals (although possibly not as distracted as he should be!), and has been unable to resist the occasional call of the river. He's still finding time to get the miles in on the bike though. Work continues to get rather in the way of cycling for Helen, but the longer days makes it easier to find the time to do both. With the arrival of summer, Helen is now riding her fair weather bike and James has fitted his new go-faster wheels-it all helps. Now if only Helen could be persuaded to lose the handbag.....

26 weeks to go......

and the team had their first training ride at the weekend.  A beautiful, sunny day with little wind made for ideal conditions for our select peloton of 4- Helen, James ,Fulch and Jo- and we covered 42 miles with a refeuling break at the "Pig and Abbott". Helen was helped along by her new shoes and pedals, and James held back somewhat by his old wheels.  The lack of anything vaguely alpine in N. Herts/Cambs presents a bit of a training challenge, but still plenty of time to find our hill legs. Its good to see our fundraising has got off the ground (thanks Granny and Grandpa) and with a few more ideas up our sleeve we hope to see our total rising soon.  Watch this space....