David Lyons

[p]This July I’ll be taking on Prudential RideLondon, a 100-mile cycle following the route of the 2012 London Olympics road race. [/p][p]As many of you know I've recently moved from the Isle of Coll to London to work for Create, a charity dedicated to transforming the lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable people through the creative arts. [/p][p]Create work with a range of people, from young carers and children with disabilities to older people living with dementia and homeless people. We use the creative arts to empower the people we work with, helping them build confidence, engage socially and enjoy a creative outlet. [/p][p]On Coll I cycled five miles to and from work along a single track road - if I saw three cars on the way it would be a busy day for traffic. That is the full extent of my cycling experience.[/p][p]The roads are closed to cars for RideLondon, but with around 25,000 cyclists taking part there is a very real chance I'll suffer a massive bout of culture shock mid-race. Whether my legs can get me round the 100 mile course is another thing entirely. [/p] [p]I’ve chosen to take on this challenge but the vulnerable people that Create works with don’t choose the challenges they face on a daily basis. Big or small, your donations will make a huge difference to the lives of children and adults across the country:[/p] [ul] [li]£10 could buy materials to enable disabled and non-disabled children to create a sculpture together.[/li][li]£25 could give five homeless adults a book of the poetry they have written.[/li] [li]£50 could enable a young patient to participate in an interactive music workshop whilst in hospital.[/li] [li]£100 could enable a child in care to take part in four photography workshops with her friends.[/li] [/ul] [p]I really appreciate your support. Thank you for your donation.[/p][p][lt]object width="425" height="350" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/usCjmwQyky8" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"[gt][lt]param name="data" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/usCjmwQyky8" /[gt][lt]param name="quality" value="high" /[gt][lt]param name="wmode" value="transparent" /[gt][lt]param name="src" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/usCjmwQyky8" /[gt][lt]/object[gt][/p]