About

In September 2017 I entered the 2018 Deloitte Ride Across Britain and ended up raising over £5,000 to support the work of Dementia UK.  The Ride Across Britain was a a 980 mile cycle ride in 9 days with over 52,000 feet of climbing !

Why did I do the ride?

In November 2017 I had a BIG birthday and thought it would be a good time to set a proper challenge rather than entering 100 mile sportives.  What better than having to do 9 100 mile sportives on consecutive days while riding from Land’s End to John O’Groats. Also I thought it was a slightly cheaper form of mid-life crisis than buying a sports car and much better for my health, or so I’d been told !  My sister, Caroline, thought I was mad although she can’t talk as she did the London Marathon in 2016 – you certainly wouldn’t catch me trying to run 26 and a bit miles.

Why Dementia UK?

My father suffered from vascular dementia and as a family we saw the devastating effect the disease can have on the individual and also those nearest to them.  I still don’t know how my mother cared for my father at home for so long before having to resort to an excellent care home when things got too much.  It’s amusing now but my father escaped from his first care home and was found wandering several miles away – climbing over five barred gates was not a problem for someone who ended up as the principal of an agricultural college!

Dementia UK deals with the “here and now” of dementia.  The charity provides support to carers and families dealing with dementia. They provide a helpline staffed by dementia specialists and also supply Admiral nurses to provide respite care.  For anyone from South Wales, the Admiral name is nothing to do with the insurance company… it comes from the nickname of the father of Dementia UK’s founder.  You can find more about Dementia UK on their website