Prudential Ride Surrey 100

[p]For those who don’t know me , I lost my sight three years ago. Despite this I have been determined to engage in various sports and activities including triathlons, snowboarding half-marathons, open water swimming and cycle events. I have a tandem cycle on which I am obviously, the stoker at the back! and I have been fortunate to find a number of pilots to come out cycling with me! This year I set the Ride London-Surrey 100 as one of my challenges and Charles Barclay (pictured with me) who is a fellow member of my triathlon club (Windrush) kindly volunteered to pilot the tandem through the entire 100 miles and up all the hills! [/p][p][br][/p][p] On Sunday 29 July I completed the Ride London-Surrey 100, naturally in one of the most amazing summers we’ve experienced in the UK the weather took a day off and Charles and me battled against the driving rain and stormy winds from start to finish! Unfortunately box Hill was closed off due to an accident and the diversion knocked down the total distance from 100 miles to 94, on the plus side we were able to power up the steeper Leith Hill whilst many solo cyclists around us had given up and were walking their bikes up. Overall we completed the ride in 7hrs 35mins, a lot slower than we would normally do the distance but being in a later wave we got bogged down in the traffic, not helped by many safety stops for the weather. photos are of me and Charles post event in Green Park having got the tandem safely across the line, not even a puncture![/p][p] [/p][p] I am delighted to be able to use the event to raise funds for the excellent charity the Kohima Educational Trust which provides scholarships for the children of the Naga tribespeople in the Kohima region of North East India. The charity was established in recognition of the support pro vided by the Naga people to the British troops during the Battle of Kohima against the Japanese in 1944. Charles has a personal connection to the charity as his uncle Charlie serving in the Royal Norfolks, was killed in the Battle of Kohima.[/p][p] [/p][p]Thanks to everyone for their brilliant response so far the target was exceeded in just over 2 weeks ahead of the main event. I hope now that I have completed the Ride London-Surrey 100 if you haven't done so already, you might be impressed enough to make a donation to help the Kohima Educational Trust continue its excellent work.[/p]