On 11 July I'm planning to smoke a big Cuban cigar and drink a whole bottle of Gigondas to raise money for a really good cause....

Hopefully, earlier that day I will have completed the 2011 Etape du Tour - the toughest stage of this year's Tour de France bike race.

I will - hopefully - have cycled 109 km over three big brutes of mountains - the Telegraphe, Galibier and Alpe d'Huez(see profile in photos). 

Altogether, I will have climbed more than 3,000 metres in temperatures nudging 30 degrees.  The length of the climb up the 2,500 m Galibier alone is around 20 km(see photo).

To acclimatise, I've spent the last six months tackling local "mountains" here in Scotland, which means I've cycled 8 km to 700 metres in temperatures occasionally nudging a balmy 12 degrees(see video).  So no worries then....

So please spare us a few quid for my efforts.

All money goes direct to Macmillan Cancer Support.  We all know someone affected by cancer blah blah blah blah.....

Here's the science bit:

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.