Tom Smith was a Scottish rugby and British & Irish Lions hero. My own father was a hero to me. Both Tom and my dad died from colon cancer. They both ignored the initial signs of the cancer and by the time they were diagnosed, it was too late. This matters to everyone as colon (bowel) cancer is the UK's biggest cancer killer of non-smokers.

I am raising £10,000 for 40tude to help the continued funding of a full time research fellow at St Marks Hospital in memory of Tom Smith. The research is focused on identifying the genetic causes of colon cancer.

To raise this money I am riding one of the toughest endurance races on the planet. The Taurus Road Mountain Race (SMR) is an unsupported bike race across the remote mountains of southern Türkiye. It is the first edition of the race and is 1500 km long with 36,000 metres of climbing.

You can learn more about the race at https://www.themountainraces.cc/taurus-mountain-raceolon cancer.

You can follow my progress at https://dotwatcher.cc/race/taurus-mountain-race-2026