Thanks for visiting the Le Tour Trial fundraising page.

Here you can support a fantastic cause by sponsoring Jonathan Brown to cycle the route of the 190km Leeds to Harrogate stage of this summer's Tour de France.

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You don’t have to be Sir Bradley Wiggins to take on Le Tour, or do you?

That’s the question Tour de France reporter Jonathan Brown is trying to answer, by taking to two wheels and tackling Le Tour head on.

Having been a non-cyclist since his teenage years, and having never ridden a road bike, he has elected to get back in the saddle for a brutal marathon ride as our Let’s Get Cycling push encourages others in Yorkshire to embrace the cycling spirit.

The 24-year-old will take on the mammoth 190km Leeds to Harrogate stage one of the Tour de France in a single day, while bidding to raise as much money for the charities behind two established West Yorkshire hospices - Wheatfields and St Gemma’s in Leeds - which have been backed by the YEP’s Half and Half Appeal since 1982.

With the help of pro cyclist and training-pro.co.uk coach Tom Barras, the UK’s largest cycling outlet Wheelbase and Tadcaster cycling firm Cyclesense, he has committed to a tailored three-month programme of gruelling training to build up the fitness to face challenges including the infamous Buttertubs Pass climb.

He said: “As much as I follow cycling, as far as road racing is concerned I’m admittedly a total novice so this is going to be a huge personal challenge.

“Hopefully by raising money for two fantastic charities and putting in the hard miles, training for and cycling stage one can inspire others to get on their bikes.”

You can follow Jonathan’s progress through a weekly Reporter en Route column to be published online and in the YEP’s Tour de France pages every Saturday, before he gears up to ride stage one in its entirety on Sunday June 15.

A series of articles will follow the ups and downs of his charity challenge, as he gets advice from top athletes, takes part in his first timed rides and learns more about the good causes his fundraising will support.

Visit www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/tdf for further information.

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