Thank you for visiting my fundraising page.

Donating through Justgiving is quick, easy and totally secure. It’s also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Merlin (Medical Emergency Relief International) 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.

Merlin helps people throughout Africa, in Asia and the Middle East.  I became aware of its work through our daughter, Julia's, involvement.  She is at present in Darfur, Sudan working for Merlin and I decided to do something myself to help contribute to the work.  2009 is also the year of my passing into the next decade of life so this is my celebration too.   Merlin is very efficient - 96p in every £1 goes to their operations in the field so anything you donate really does help people through Merlin's work.

I feel it is important that all the money contributed by people kind enough to sponsor me should go towards the charity's work.  I am, therefore, covering all the costs of my 'holiday' ride to Paris myself.

Merlin and I would be delighted if you are able to contribute so please grab the moment and do so while you think of it.

I started training for this 300 mile adventure in April and am at present cycling 20 miles four times a week with a longer ride or two at the weekends. All very time consuming but I'm certainly fitter than I was!

10 August - an update.  Cycling rather longer each time I'm out and have now done a 65 mile ride (on the hottest day of the year!) which I survived.  I'm about to get practice on hills in Scotland as I'm there until the week before the ride - now only about 3 weeks away.  Julia's just been home for 10 days departing this afternoon.  She provided much encouragement so now I have doubled my efforts!

25 August - a further update.  Oh dear.  Scottish weather was a disaster while I was away - over 200mm in 12 days (with at least 4 days where the quantity was 40mm or more in 24 hours).  I'm afraid, therefore, I wasn't as energetic as I might otherwise have been and cycling dropped back immensely.  With only a week to go, that's not good news but I'm back in the fair south now and will keep up a steady pace from now on.  It's only a week to go to departure!  I hope we don't get 4 days of Scottish weather on the way to Paris!

8 September - for anyone visiting my page since I returned from the ride to Paris, I'm delighted to say I made it entirely in one piece without too many discomforts.  I had the dubious honour of being the first to get a puncture 2 miles out from the start point but that was my only one.  Day 1 was wet to Dover and quite hilly, Day 2 was extremely windy with cross winds buffetting us all day until the final 10 miles or so when it was behind us and all downhill with a glorious coast into Arras.  Day 3 was cycling in the rain to begin with, then it cleared but the wind got up again.  This day was a moving experience as we cycled through the Somme with all the Commonwealth war graves along the way and one German cemetery with 22,665 people buried there.  Day 4 was glorious to begin with cycling through the Forests of Compiegne north of Paris.  The outskirts of Paris leave something to be desired but once towards the centre we had a great ride and the French drivers are extremely courteous to cyclists.  We negotiated the traffic around the Arc de Triomphe, with the help of the support vehicles and ended up looking across the Seine to the Eiffel Tower from the Trocadero - a brilliant place to end. 

I'm so pleased you visited my page (and that I really did cycle to Paris!)

Louise