My Forth Ports colleague Scott Cameron and I are due to participate in the 10 Under the Ben mountain bike endurance race at Fort William this April. We are aiming to raise money for Lyme Disease UK as our NPO of choice.

Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne infectious disease in the northern hemisphere and can lead to serious health consequences. Lyme disease is endemic in many parts of the United Kingdom, particularly in woodland or heath-land areas.

We thought given the nature and location of the event, that Lyme Disease UK would be an ideal beneficiary. If you are not familiar with the disease I would recommend reading the following article from MBR and looking at the information available on the LDUK website .

I am also close to someone who was bitten by a tick, caught Lyme and now suffers terribly as a result. I am therefore acutely aware of the possible consequences and complications of the disease and the importance of raising awareness, especially in the MTB community.

The symptoms of Lyme disease are numerous and can vary significantly from case to case. These can include malaise, unexplained flu-like symptoms, soreness and achiness, light and noise sensitivity, cognitive problems, fatigue, a stiff neck, facial palsy, numbness and tingling.

The symptoms can change from day to day as well as over longer periods of time. They can start suddenly or develop slowly over time – some people report an initial flu-like illness followed by a period of wellness before a slow decline whereas some become unwell and simply don’t recover.

Left untreated, the infection can spread anywhere in the body leading to around 70 recognised symptoms. People can develop severe issues with their endocrine and neurological systems and experience musculoskeletal, cardiac, dermatological and neuropsychiatric problems.

At present, there is no gold-standard test for Lyme disease which can rule out the illness and there is no test for cure. What everyone does appear to agree on is that if caught early, Lyme disease should be easier to treat, enabling the patient to return to full health. The chances are, the longer an infection is left untreated, the harder it will be to combat.

All money donated will go directly to LDUK to assist them in raising awareness and providing support. More information can be found on the LDUK website and Facebook page .