A cycle to help the people of Ukraine: Brighton to the Ukrainian Embassy
Gareth Hearn and Colin Brown is raising money for The British Red Cross Society
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Dear sponsors
With bad weather forecast for tomorrow (Wednesday), I decided to do the ride today. I started at 0810 from Brighton Pier and cycled through Brighton towards Ditchling Beacon on the crest of the South Downs. The hill through Brighton is a long and steep climb, possibly in places steeper than anywhere else on the route in a northerly direction. The views from the Beacon were stunning. I continued north through some very pretty villages, including Ditchling, Linfield, Ardingly and Turner' Hill. There were some long steep climbs between easy-going sections.
Beyond Coulsdon the route was more or less built up with generally increasing traffic going north. I cycled through Purley, Thornton Heath, Streatham, Tooting and Battersea before crossing the Thames and continuing towards Shepherd's Bush and eventually Holland Park. I reached the Ukrainian Embassy after a journey of 5 hrs and 11 minutes. Many flowers, cards and messages had been left on and below the wall outside the embassy.
The total journey was 57 miles, making my average speed 11 mph - very slow - due to several stops to check directions and the slow traffic and enumerable sets of traffic lights in central London. Well, that's my excuse anyway.
Thank you to everyone who has sponsored me. Please view The Gallery to see some photographs. Please also click on the Garmin Connect link below to see that my average 'travelling speed' i.e. between holdups, was not significantly higher than 11 mph.
What is happening in Ukraine is a human catastrophe unfolding on our doorstep. We see such terrible scenes on our TV screens and they are shocking and heart-breaking. So much so, that we feel we must help in whatever way we can. In making my small contribution to help, I am peddling from Brighton Pier to the Ukrainian Embassy in Holland Park, London. The distance on A and B roads is somewhere between 57 and 60 miles. I will start the journey at 0800 on Wed 16 March. Not allowing for punctures and getting lost, it should take me about 5 hours. I am hoping to raise £300, that's about £5 a mile. That will undoubtedly spur me on.
The British Red Cross plays a vital role in emergency response and, as we have seen on the news reports, is fully 'embedded' in the relief work taking place in the most heavily bombed parts of Ukraine.
So, please help with any contribution that you can.