Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

I'd be hugely grateful if you can support me on The Rapha Bordeaux -Paris Challenge. I am riding as a late substitution, due to injury, to help the 100,000 people with autism in the UK; people like Oscar, the son of good friends, Lucy and Simon Mottram.

The Challenge is a team relay run over the famous 600km Bordeaux-Paris 'lost classic' route, last staged in 1988. So it is 25 years since the race was last run and 50 years since Tom Simpson became the last Briton to win it, finishing in 14 hours.

Rapha's Bordeaux-Paris Challenge has been designed as a team relay: 25 teams of four riders will have 24 hours to complete the distance.

Families with autism often do not get the right support putting them under immense strain. It is estimated that the divorce rate of parents of children with autism is 60% higher than average.

Some people with autism are able to live relatively independant lives but others face additional challenges, including learning disabilities, which affect them so profoundly they need support in many areas. Earlly intervention, education and support are critical in enabling children and young people with autism to lead fulfilling lives. Ambitious about Autism aims to make the ordinary possible for more children and young people with autism.

£25 could fund one hour of outreach to support children with autism in mainstream early education settings, helping reduce the 40% of children who are bullied and 27% who currently will face exclusion at least once.

£75 could fund one day of advocacy for a young person, to help then transition to adulthood and give them a voice to influence the provision of further education, health, social care and housing.

£100 could pay for a familly to attend a day's resilience training, helping families to deal with challenging behaviour and stay together.

Please dig deep to help me support Ambitious about Autism, who have helped Oscar and many others enormously over the years.

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. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please donate now.

Thankyou,

Cathal