Thank you for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page, please take a few moments to read on. I need your help in achieving my goal of Cycling across Cuba for Cancer Research UK charity - Cuban Revolution Cycle 6th-15th November 2009 

 In order to take part, I need to raise a minimum of £1353.25 in sponsorship by Thursday 10th September 2009 - 1 week today! I have already paid the deposits, insurance, medical requirements, etc, as well as working seeing my clients 6 days a week! for those of you who I've been in contact with recently, you'll know I've been body building and any type of cardio vascular exercise has not been a part of my training! That coupled with me being so laid back, you can see this is well and truly is a challenge! Your help in achieving this target would be greatly appreciated and will go a little way to helping Cancer Research. 

During July 1999, my mother (Dorrett) was diagnosed with Breast Cancer, she was called in for a 3 yearly mammogram, where they initially discovered the shadow in her breast. She then had a scan to confirm, followed by a biopsy, which confirmed what they found was cancerous. It was then decided that for them to be sure the cancer had gone and would not spread, they had to perform a mastectomy. From memory of how my mum was at the time, I can only imagine how this must of made her feel and as a man, even today I'm sure I can only imagine a fraction of how she was feeling at the time. I can remember the day my family and I found out like it was yesterday. I was sat at my desk at work when I got the phone call, I was devastated and spent the next 10 minutes sitting trying to hide my emotions from my colleagues then the next hour in private wiping away the tears and thinking "why my Mum?" A question I'm sure has been asked many times before and many times since.

My mother and our family are one of the lucky cases and had it not been for the continuous tireless efforts of cancer research, my mother might not be with us today. At the time of the discovery of the cancer, there was no lump. The doctors said it may have taken another 2-3 years for it to develop into a noticeable lump, by which time it could have spread into her bones, so thanks to ongoing research, they were able to catch it before the implications became even more severe. 

Since then, I have felt that in some small way at least, I should do something to help contribute to the charity that saved my mothers life. I have taken part in a 15 mile bike ride, which at the time felt like hell.... and contributed small amounts to the charity. In August last year, I met a very determined client (Jenny) who herself was recovering from Crohn's Disease. Together we discussed her outrageous but, as proven, achievable weight loss and fitness targets. 5 months later after destroying the targets I had set for her, through hard training, disciplined nutrition and a lot of energy, we sat celebrating her amazing achievements. Jen, for those that know her, is full of beans and is always looking for the next challenge, "like she hadn't done enough!!". She mentioned cycling across Cuba for her charity NACC and having helped her get this far with her training I thought "what's one more challenge?!". I there and then made the commitment to Cycle Cuba (350 kms) over 5.5 days during November this year for Cancer Research (6th - 15th). That was in December 2008 and now with the challenge only 9 weeks away, reality has hit, the cycling is getting more intense with every ride and my butt is getting more sore with every mile!! 

Just as a little test, we participated in Action 100 - Bristol to London (100 miles) on Sunday 30th August, there are pictures and medals to prove it but if that's not enough I still have the John Wayne walk going on...not a good look or feeling! (keep the jokes clean and to a minimum...) 

Cancer is one of the most common life claimers in the UK and takes on many different forms in both men and women. It has no prejudice, consideration or sense of timing for those of us that it attacks. Not only does it affect those people who have it, but also the lives of their loved ones, families and friends. As a Personal Trainer, I come in to contact with a lot of people, some of whom I occasionally get onto talking about life in general outside of the gym walls, about 6 months ago within the space of a month (don't quote me on this) I had heard of around 6 different cases of cancer, one being one of my clients. Obviously, they didn't all get it in that one month, but I think you get where I'm coming from in terms of how many people it affects.

In 2002, 41,720 women were diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK. This works out to be just under 116 cases for every 100,000 women (115.7 with age standardised figures) so for every 100,000 women in the UK, about 116 women were diagnosed with breast cancer. 

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