Saturday 26th September 2009
Riders - Tim Alltree, David Carver, Erica Carver, Paddy Carver, Graham Copping, Karl Gibbs, Dave Graves, Chris Hunter, Stephen Jones, Teena Jones, Ben Lancaster, Lou Lancaster, Floyd Pattie.
'Le Tour de Walden 2009' is a demanding 60 mile (That's 60 miles!! & we are by no means olympic cyclists!!) circular route through the villages around Saffron Walden. Some riders - the saner among us - will join us at the half way point to complete a still impressive 30 mile ride.
Check out our route here! www.mapmyride.com/route/gb/saffron%20walden/579124877858758947
We are taking on this challenge to raise funds for Addenbrooke's Hospital Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). www.act4addenbrookes.org.uk/picu
In February this year our 9 week old baby boy Leon was suddenly taken ill with an extremeley nasty and dangerous respiratory virus. One minute he was our happy, smiley baby and the next he had turned a horrible shade of grey and was desperately struggling to breathe, a nightmare for any parent. The virus had infected his lungs and caused his bronchial tubes to swell shut making breathing near impossible. Leon was rushed to Addenbrooke's hospital and from the moment we arrived the team from the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) were there by his side doing all they could for him, at the same time reassuring and explaining everything to us. Leon spent a difficult week in Intensive Care on a ventilator and sedated whilst his tiny body fought very hard to beat the virus. It was such a frightening time for all Leon's family but we were consistently amazed by all the doctors and nurses on PICU who took such great care of the three of us. Every step of the way they made sure we understood exactly what was happening, and their calm caring manner really helped us through a horrendous week.
Leon is now 10 months old and thanks to everyone on PICU, and despite initial concerns, he has made a full recovery and is developing very well. In fact you could not tell that not long a go he was critically ill in hospital.
To show our great appreciation for the efforts from everyone on PICU and so the unit can carry on giving fantastic care to such poorly babies and children, a group of Leon's family and friends are embarking on an epic bike ride to raise stacks of cash!
PICU is currently raising money to obtain a portable ultrasound machine to assist with the diagnoses of cardiac conditions and to assist in the procedure of fitting central lines. The funds raised by this ride will go towards the £34k required to purchase this vital piece of equipment which would be used daily and be to the benefit of many children.
Thanks for taking the time to visit our JustGiving page.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - we raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
So please dig deep and donate now. Thank you.
David, Erica & Leon Carver
