In 2024 I will be still Cycling and have two major Rides planned - The Atlas Mountain Race and also an amazing 5000 mile solo trip across the USA. 

This fundraising page continues from my 2022 Stalag IVB 1924 mile solo cycle ride.

About Dad and St James' Church:

Dad loved St James' Church in Buxworth,  not just because we had family occasions there and its his local Church, but Dad spend time there virtually every day since his beloved Joyce passed away in 2015.

Dad would make it a daily trip to visit Mum and never missed a day except for the harshest of weather, but as his health and mobility deteriorated into his 90s there were times when he just could not make it. 

He struggled to walk so badly over the last few years that although he could actually drive down to see Mum, he couldn't manage the walk from the car to her graveside and would often sit in the car for hours. 

He looked at a Mobility Scooter but with a rough muddy path including a step, he could still not get near to Mum, but eventually a solution was reached.

The path suddenly was completely tarmaced, made smoother and the step removed and he then purchased a good quality Mobility Scooter with good road capabilities, and he would get him self wrapped up whatever the weather and could get graveside again.

He loved nothing more than the 5 mile return trip, often coming back in the dark, but it mattered not as all he wanted to be, was with Joyce. 

2021 was a very hard year for Dad, and as he became more ill, he simply couldn't manage to get to Mum and this broke his heart. 

Dad has always supported the Church and he will be thrilled to know that any amount of money you can donate will go directly to them to support the place that he now lays in rest with Mum. 

At Dad's funeral we helped raise a few pounds for both St James Church and Blythe House Hospicecare, but in his memory we would like to use this page to help Dad add to the very generous donations he made to the Church, both in life and after his passing. 

If you dont know about Dad, he was a Paratrooper, a Pathfinder from the 22nd Independent Parachute Company and was in the very first plane to drop on D-Day - 6th June 1944 at around 00:20, inland behind enemy lines, miles from the beaches, but carrying out important work to bring in Paratrooper forces from 8th Para to the east of Caen to destroy bridges to protect this flank. 

Dad was eventually blown up, injured, captured, taken Prisoner of War, interrogated and after a spell in a field hospital , loaded onto a cattle train in horrendous conditions and taken to Stalag IVB as a POW until the end of the War.

I planned with Dad to follow this train journey on my bicycle and unfortunately for me, the Germans took him south before taking him north, so the route I have to follow is over 1800 miles. 

I will be setting off (as Dad did) from RAF Harwell on the 5th June, 78 years later to the day.  I myself will 'land' in Normandy on D-Day 6th June, but in a more comfortable manner, by Ferry rather than jumping out of an aeroplane in darkness at 600ft with his 10 comrades from his 'stick' not knowing what fate would become of them. 

After spending the day visiting important sites relevant to my Dad around his Drop Zone and visiting the very Chateau where he was interrogated, I will be presenting the Musee Memorial Pegasus with the wooden carved Parachute Regiment emblem that every member of the family clubbed together for his 97th birthday present. 

His wishes were that this should go to his good friend the curator at the Museum and as a family we have also decided to donate his Military War Medals for display and also a place where his 5 children, 15 grand children and 4 great grand children can visit them in future years. 

As mentioned above, 2024 will see two new challenges: The 1300 km 22,000m elevation 8 day ATLAS MOUNTAIN RACE in February, and also my attempt to ride solo across the USA, off-road where possible and trying to total 5000 miles. 

My main fundraising on my trip is for (to be confirmed) and I will have a separate page if you would like to support them too, but I wanted to have another option for those people who wanted to support something other than that charity, and maybe a little bit more personal to Dad. 

The Church does need on going funds just for upkeep, but the main reasoning behind the fundraising for St James' is for the important and urgent repairs and restoration of the Church Organ to enable many more people and families to enjoy services, weddings, christenings and funerals. 

This is a great Church and Im so pleased youve spent time reading this. 

Your moral support is all I need for the cycling trip, (I will be posting daily up-dates on INSTAGRAM :  rapid_rich ), but if you would like to give me a boost knowing that my efforts are helping Dad make money for this special Church, then any amount will be gratefully received. 

Thank you

Richard Stoodley