Story

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. After last year's exploits of riding the Etape Caledonia, 81miles of Scottish hills. I have decided after enjoying it so much to come back and have another go at raising some money for a good cause. I felt that if I was going to ask you again for some of your hard earn cash, I would have to do something a bit harder. So this year, a few friends and I are going to cycle from Paris to Montpellier on the south coast of France. Our journey will be starting on April 14 at Gare de Nord station in Paris and finish 5 days and 514 miles (830km) later on the beach in Montpellier. It will involve about 5750m of hill climbing, with 19 category climbs. Well I said it was harder than last year. This year I will be riding for the Alzheimer's Research UK. This is a charity close to my heart. 5 years ago my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. I have learnt over these years what a brutal disease it is. She was in the prime of her life at 70, physically very active, going to the gym 3 times a week and travelling to all corners of the world. Since then her memory has slowly been wiped like a hard drive. With it her ability to function. My mother is like 750,000 other people in the UK who suffer with dementia, this will rise to over 1million by 2025. Alzheimer's and other dementia related diseases costs the British economy £23bn per year this is more than cancer and heart disease combined. Yet research into the disease is desperately underfunded, 12 times less than cancer and more than 3 times less than heart disease. Only £50m per annum, compared to £590m in cancer. Alzheimer’s Research UK is the UK’s leading dementia research charity. As research experts, they specialise in funding world-class, pioneering research at leading universities to find preventions, treatments and a cure for dementia. They believe science and innovation hold the key to defeating dementia and invest in the scientists discovering more about the condition and its causes. Their findings improve the lives of everyone affected by dementia now and in the future. Their forge partnerships with Government and other key organisations to make dementia research a national priority. They  encourage everyone to join them in supporting research and achieving a world free from dementia. Due to the fantastic response in making the target of £829 (the distance in Km) I have decided to increase the target to £1500. Please keep donating so that I can make my target. Note that all of your donation will be going to the charity, I will be funding the trip myself. 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 - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity. For my European friends you can also donate on this site paying with a debit or credit card. So please dig deep and donate now at my Justgiving website Other information on Alzheimer's websites. http://www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/dementia-statistics/ http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/