As a keen supporter of the Deutsche Cycle charity rides I have decided to attempt the first 3 days of the Tour De France to support the Rainbow Trust (Charity for terminally ill children) and Malaria No More UK. The last ride I did for the bank was 3 years ago and it was very touching to see just how appreciative the charities are for funds, they were thanked us wholeheartedly and said they could never contemplate cycling that far and the money and profile would make a big difference,  all the cyclists felt really guilty afterwards as the truth was none of us could do the work that these people do.

 

I would like to note that all the money raised will go to the charities, I have paid £650 to the organisers and committed to raise £1,700. For MAMIL’s such as myself it is an ambition to ride an Etape, this is one day of the tour and generally less than 70% finish. Distances over 80 miles hurt at my age, when I see 81 Miles on my Garmin my knees, legs, back and derriere generally unite in sending messages to my brain to stop and so every mile over this is a grind. Doing this 3 consecutive days a real challenge and will require many hours in the saddle training.

 

Day 1: 122 Miles and a lot of Climbing

Day 2:  95 Miles and a lot of Climbing

Day 3: 106 Miles, sprint to London

 

The event is listed here on mydb. https://mydb.intranet.db.com/groups/charities-of-the-year/projects/deutschebike - the official Tour event itself can be found here http://letour.yorkshire.com/