In an ill-advised moment of madness, I agreed to enter a stupidly difficult cycle race in France.

On 3 July 2010, I'll  be taking my place among seven thousand other hardy souls at the start line of La Marmotte. It involves scaling, on a bike, four infamous alpine mountain passes - the Cols du Glandon, Télégraphe and Galibier and, just for good measure, the 21-hairpin Alpe d'Huez. You need a doctor's note to enter; it's that bad.

I'm doing it mainly in memory of my uncle Roger, who died after a long battle with cancer in 2009. For every pound I lose suffering up the local hills, I hope to gain the same and more in sterling for two causes close to my heart. Macmillan Cancer Support looked after my uncle during his illness, so they'll be the main recipient of my fund-raising efforts. 

I'll also be channelling some cash towards Coral Cay Conservation, a charity into which my uncle put a lot of time and effort. Unfortunately, they don't have a Justgiving account, but you can donate easily, securely and commission-free (and claim Gift Aid) by clicking on this link. They tell me they can track donations, so I'll keep you posted on how much has been raised either here on on my blog. You are, of course, welcome to give to both charities should you wish, but donations to either will be much appreciated. 

Thanks for reading and, if you want to keep track of my progress, I'm documenting my training in all its gory detail at the One more gear blog. 

Cheers,

Ben

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