We did it! Emma and I completed the Cycle China Challenge on 8th May 2011. From the fund-raising to the training and of course the Challenge itself, it has been an amazing journey and a truly rewarding experience! We couldn't have done it without the support of friends and family, so a huge thank you to you all!

We were 2 amongst a team of 77 women, looked after by 12 support staff. We travelled by plane - 6 flights totaling 11,794 miles. We stayed in 8 different hotels over 12 days, becoming very efficient at packing and un-packing. We visited 4 cities, including The Forbidden City (dating back to The Ming Dynasty, 1407). We cycled 450km, scaling mountains up to 3228 feet (repeatedly)! We caught a ski-lift to Buddha Hill and a cable-car to The Great Wall at Mutianyu. We walked through Tian'anmen Square in to The Imperial Palace and then by rickshaw to The Hutongs of Beijing. A coach took us to a Silk Factory for some retail therapy and a Chinese Massage to ease those aching muscles! A private taxi and guide showed us around the City of Xian including The Wild Goose Pagoda, The Grand Mosque, The Muslim Quarter and The Shaanxi Grand Opera House. And finally we looked back 2,200 years to see Emperor Qin's Terra-cotta Army before returning to Beijing and imagining the atmosphere at The 2008 Games at The Olympic Park.

The busiest traffic we have ever seen, the largest square in the world, the complete peace and tranquility of the mountain regions, the happy Chinese people cheering us through the rural villages, the dogs chasing our bikes, the jelly legs, the group singing to get us up those hills, the tears of joy, the hours of laughter, the sheer exhilaration of completing the challenge, which has raised over £600,000 for reasearch. We will never forget it!

**********Previous News Updates**********

 A very, very cold training weekend with "Action for Charity" on 29th and 30th January. About half of the group that are going to China braved the minus temperatures to cycle around the Cotswolds for the weekend. It was great to meet lots of the people I will be travelling with. We are all really looking forward to the challenge and this weekend was a good test of our resilience against the cold. Hopefully, ice will not be an issue in Beijing!

 

A huge thank you to everyone who attended my "Pirates of the Caribbean" Charity BBQ on Saturday 25th September, particularly my parents and in-laws who helped with all of the preparations and clearing up; friends who helped to sell raffle tickets, clear dishes and wash up; and Richard and Sandy Ellis, who very kindly lent us everything from the marquee and gazebos to the table, crockery, cutlery and glasses. Everyone was extremely generous making donations to the Treasure Chest for The Caribbean Feast, prepared and cooked by my husband. The donations combined with a raffle raised nearly £400. A good night. Thank you m'hearties!
68 players from all over the country took part in my Charity Golf Day on Friday 6th August at Henlle Park Golf Club, raising over £800. A huge thank you to everyone that played; the staff at Henlle Park Golf Club who made sure everything ran smoothly; the sponsors who supported the raffle and prizes and my team of fantastic helpers. A great day!
I have joined the Cheltenham CTC, riding approximately 50 miles each Sunday morning with a group of experienced cyclists. On 4th July I completed my first all day ride with the group to Goodrich Castle, completing just over 85 miles.
I have attended several village car boot sales over the past few weeks. Friends and family have cleared out their garages and stocked bags full of baby clothes, books and bric-a-brac, enabling me to raise nearly £200.
A huge thank you must go to my Mum who recently ran two afternoon tea events in Devon. Scones, cakes, pavlova and lots of cream were enjoyed by all. Friends and family in attendance dontated over £230 - fantastic!
For the new visitors to my site. Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

As many of you know I am no longer able to play golf due to an ongoing back problem. Although I have easily managed to fill my time with other things, including lots of gardening and dog walks, I have decided it is about time I did something to get the adrenalin pumping again!

In a moment of inspiration (better known as sheer insanity) I have signed up to a 450km cycling challenge through the Beijing Province of China. "Are you mad," I hear you cry.............. Surely you already knew that?

This is the 10th women-only challenge, to rasie funds for groundbreaking medical research. "Women for Women" raises funds to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of a range of conditions that affect women and babies, including genetic diseases, infertility, miscarriage, cancer and brain damage. The fundamental aim of the charity is to ensure that women have ongoing good health throughout their lives and that more women have a normal pregnancy and healthy baby.

Most of us will know of someone who has been affected by a condition that this charity is striving to support, so please dig deep and donate as much as you are able. Thankyou.

In the meantime I will be doing lots of training and searching for saddle-sore avoidance techniques!

Best wishes,

Sharon

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.