Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page for St Mary's Church Restoration fund.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally safe.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page for St Mary's Church Restoration fund.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally safe.

I will be cycling this June through the Southern regions of France formerly known as Occitania. I am hoping to raise a target of £1,000 of vital funds for the St Mary's Church Restoration Fund. Starting from the M.Chapoutier winery in Tain L’Hermitage   on Monday 1st June, the “Tour de L’Oc” will see a fourteen strong peloton of riders travel through some of southern France’s most picturesque scenery to finish nearly 500 km later at Collioure on the Spanish border.

However, a cycling holiday this is not, for the tour includes a gruelling  21.5 km 1912 metre climb of  the infamous Mont Ventoux, which some have called the hardest of all the mythical Tour de France climbs. The ascent nearly beat the 1970 Tour de France Champion Eddy Merckx who rode himself to the brink of collapse, requiring oxygen to recover during the climb. Eddy went on to win the Tour de France that year, and we have confidence that all rider in the Tour de L’Oc will rise to the challenge and conquer Mont Ventoux.

 "Physically, the Ventoux is dreadful. Bald, it's the spirit of Dry: Its climate (it is much more an essence of climate than a geographic place) makes it a damned terrain, a testing place for heroes, something like a higher hell."

Roland Barthes, French philosopher and bicycle racing fan,

St Mary's Church in the lovely Hampshire hamlet  of Tufton ,by the River Test, is in the process of being restored. Our next project will be the internal redecoration of the church. This will require restoration work by a conservationist to the lime-washed stone rubble walls which are crumbling and flaking in many places. As a Grade1 listed church dating back to the 11th Century  it is necessary to ensure that the redecoration is in keeping with the style of the building and will allow the walls to breathe, ensuring that the crumbling and flaking don't reoccur. We are hoping to raise £25000 to enable this work to be started.

Any donations that you give (especially if gift-aided) will be of tremendous help.

Thank you in anticipation.