I really enjoyed the film and I’d love to read of your experience of it. I hope you do survive. “Race Report…he died. Very sad”  would be disapointing.

Good luck!

My apologies you are quite right. It’s 6770. I’ll have a look at the Roadlink but I may compromise and run a 30 tooth.

Thanks very much for the help.

Things are beginning to improve, much like the weather. Training rides are now being completed. I’m also getting some custom riding jerseys made for both training and the ride itself. If you have a business and you’d like to put your company logo on one of the panels in exchange for a donation, just drop me an email and we can get it organised.

Of course, if you’d just like to donate and be in with a chance of winning a prize, the link to the Just Giving page is on page one of this thread.

Thanks very much if you’ve already taken part and thanks in advance if you are going to.

Thanks very much for the recommendation for a physio, BWD. I’ll give it a few more days and if it’s not improved, I’ll go and see Mr Budd and name drop you while I’m there (for better or worse).

Huge thanks also to z1ppy and scc999 for the donations. I’ve emailed copies of your tickets. Really grateful and so close to going over the £700 mark. Brilliant stuff!

Huge thanks to Paul. Let me have your contact details and I’ll get your tickets organised. Thanks again. I’m very grateful.

I found this languishing on page 5.

Looks like training can finally start in earnest this weekend. My knee ligament has responded rather well to a very frustrated hammering with my fist and apart from being a little black and blue from bruising, it doesn’t seem too sore at all.

Cheers Si  :-)

Now added to the prize fund is a £40 gift card for any Nando’s restaurant or takeaway. Somebody is going to win with a £1 ticket one of the excellent prizes, not least a day’s instruction with Tony (Jedi) at UK Bike Skills, or a flat screen TV etc.

I seem to have stalled at £666 which is a bit unnerving. I’d really appreciate a little nudge up and it could very well win you one of the excellent prizes already donated or yet to come.

I seem to be stuck at a rather unfortunate number. Especially for the superstitious. https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/twintowers540miles

If you have somebody with a terminal illness or you even have worries and concerns around somebody’s demise, even your own, phone your local hospice. Talk to them because they will talk to you and they have so much understanding, knowledge… help. There is so much more to a hospice than going there to die.

Apologies for the shameless plug. I’ll just put this here. I think it’s a scandal that hospice’s are charities but that’s a rant for another day.

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/twin-towers-sponsorship-with-a-difference-4/

I’ve had a message from Just Giving. It was mentioned above (some way up) but as this is essentially a raffle fundraising event in the back of a (rather large) challenge, gift aiding your contribution is not allowed.

Your very generous donations without gift aid are still VERY much appreciated.

Massive thanks to Simon for the donation. I’ll get your tickets organised. Still months to go and the funds are edging toward £1000 which is brilliant.

I’ll get organised this weekend and add some more prizes that have been donated.

As ever, huge thanks to everybody who have donated and “Go on. You have to be in it to win it!” to those thinking of donating.

I hope nobody objects to me dumping this here for a minute or two….I think it has some relevance, albeit tenuous ….

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/twintowers540miles

‘Busgate’ (aka Wilmslow Rd and Oxford Rd) by any chance? I got a fine for being on Hathersage Rd. I was trying find a drop off point for my wife at the Royal Infirmary as she was presenting some fancy new method of doing something medical.

It’s very confusing just where you can and can’t go in a car round there. If not there then my money is on the shady bus lane outside of Victoria Station heading toward the Arena.

Can anybody recommend a sports physio in the Manchester / Peak area? What I thought was an ITB injury just isn’t getting any better three weeks on. My knee is ooked with an f on the beginning and I have a very big bike ride to train for.

Going down to Cannock Chase and back on the roadie tomorrow if my knee holds up and taking one (possibly two) newbie(s) out from Hope on the mtb on Sunday.

Thank you very much for the donation Jimdubleyou. you’re very kind. I’m just organising your tickets.

A 6 bottles of expensive wine hamper has just been delivered courtesy of Bargain Booze.

I’ve been photographing and sending images of people’s raffle tickets but there a few who haven’t left any contact details. It would be great if you could get in touch if you haven’t so I can add your details to the prize draw. I wouldn’t want anybody to miss out.

Just 10 days in and the target of £540 is now disappearing in the rear view mirror.Fantastic stuff! Lots and lots of prizes to be added to the draw so chuck a quid or so in if you’d like to be included?

Really very big thanks to everybody who have done so, so far. You’re all ace! :-)

Wow! Thank you very much indeed for the contributions. I’m gobsmacked but really grateful. Over £540 in 8 days! I’ve barely got started on the prize collecting and I am WAY behind on issuing out tickets. Really sorry but I’ll get on to it this evening and get them all done for everyone.

It would be great to do a few miles with you Stevie and anybody else along the route. I would love to be able to say thank you in person to everybody.

The bike on the turbo hasn’t had a pedal turned in weeks. I really need to up my game or I’m going to fail miserably….

I get so frustrated that hospice’s have t rely so heavily on donations. I remember volunteering and a young mum of two who was supposed to be going on holiday with her youngsters had a paddling pool, sandpit, inflatable palm trees, sun loungers and more in her room with ice creams and a guest visit of a donkey at her room window.  They’ve had Christmas in October, Premier league football players in to visit…. they just find a way of doing stuff. Putting life in to hours where they can’t put hours in to life.

Just £18 short of my £540 target in one week! Thanks so much. I thought it would take up to August to get anywhere near that!

I love this place. Still hoping for route suggestions and volunteers to come and ride for a bit.

Thank you very much! I’ll get your tickets organised this evening for you. Hoping to have some Adidas sports gear to add to the draw soon.

Thanks very much again and good luck in the draw.

I may be doing the Sarn Helen again this summer Gusmas. Thank you again for your massive support.

I’d be interested in opinions of routes from Blackpool to the south coast if anybody has them?

Nearly reached the target of £540 within 10 days. Members of this forum are largely a special bunch….in a good way :-)

Bargain Booze have donated a hamper (6 bottles of wine) to add to the prizes if anybody else is tempted to stick a couple of quid in?

gnusmas! Thank you very much indeed! That’s really generous. Thank you. Any chance of you making it out on to the road with me for a little while on the 7th or 8th August? It would be fantastic to get to do a few miles with you and with anybody who has very kindly contributed so I can say “Thank you” in person.

I’m just in the process of getting your draw tickets photographed for you.

Just looking at various routes for the English section. It has to incorporate, or pass not far from Heald Green (Stockport) so I can call in at the hospice for a photo shoot.

Google maps is suggesting Blackpool, Preston, Chorley, Salford, Heald Green, Alderley Edge, Congleton, Stoke on Trent, Wolverhampton, Royal Leamington Spar, Oxford, Guilford, Newhaven. Any better route suggestions?

Anybody feeling generous (or lucky)? I could do with a few more quid to jump start momentum again. Still very early days but it all helps and I’m very grateful.

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/twintowers540miles

Thanks again to all that contributed through this forum. Your generosity is heart warming. It astounds me that St Ann’s probably the biggest hospice in the UK, like all hospices are charities and in St Ann’s case, they have to generate £16,000 PER DAY just to keep the doors open. well, that’s my minor rant out of the way.

To those that have contributed some cash, please could you leave me your email address or mobile number (I promise I won’t pass them on to anybody at all – not even to the fund raising team) at Twintowers540@gmail.com so I can email or text your ticket details to you.

Again, thank you very much indeed. It would be great to see you out on the road on the day if possible? I’ll post up the route and timings nearer the time….and when we’ve had chance to even plan a route or we could leave it to the excellent Mr Nettles and just go where he tells us? :-)

Thanks for the logistical research Si. I’ll have two of the fundraising team out on the road in a hospice van veryfiying at various (undesclosed to me) points along the way right into Paris so I don’t cheat. Somebody let slip that I was dragged up on Offerton Estate.

Connect. Pretty much everyone who has donated / sent some funds including our works CEO have gift aided but it’s entirely up to you. Either way would be very gratefully received and I will take personal responsibility for any fall out regarding the Inland Revenue and gift aid.

Thank you very much for considering making a contribution and in turn entering the draw.

Steve

Thank you very much for the donations / entries so far,  Hedley…..I hadn’t thought about the wet stuff in between…. . I need a plan (or permission to do laps on the ferry).

An unashamed bump with the begging bowl out. More prizes added and more still to come, Any contributions hugely appreciated.

Thanks for the advice. I’ll be sticking to fire roads while I’m there and unless it dries up significantly in the next week or two, I’ll be on quite roads exclusively, there and back.

I’ll have a look at that, thanks.

What a very kind offer! Thank you very much.

I’m going to start distributing raffle tickets this week. I’ve not checked because I can’t get into Gmail at work but it’d be great if I could get your mobile numbers (I promise they won’t be sold to PPI firms etc.) or email address and I can let people know what their winning numbers are.

<span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>Huge thanks </span>also to the guys who have just donated via this forum! It’s massively appreciated, it really is and it’s a real motivator to get out and get some miles done in the hail and snow.

Hehehe! I bet that get a mention every time he comes into contact from somebody who was there.

Route is a straight a line as I can make it from Blackpool to Newhaven. I think it will go through Royal Leamington Spa and Oxford. It would be lovely to ride for a while with you.

Thank you so much again for the voucher Tony!

Mr Nettles! You are a legend! How far did you walk? :-)

Anybody else? Some really good prizes and more to be added. Just think. Spend a quid or two, barely even notice it and then in August, get a text or email asking for your address because you’ve won a skills day with Jedi worth £95 or a box fresh set of Hope wheels….

A bump for the evening lurkers.

I’ve done this very thing on my Colnago World Cup CX. I set them up tubeless and they both blew off the rim at the same time (bike was in the work stand) at 70psi. That was an impressive distribution of Stans’ fluid…….

Much happier at 50psi and no problems at all.

Thanks gnusmas. The raffle draw will be the weekend following the ride (anybody and everybody welcome to join in as well)  so Saturday 11th or Sunday 12th August depending on who’s doing it at the hospice. We’re hoping for somebody with a degree of celebrity status. I’ll look a right prat if the total is £150 or something. I’m starting to panic here a bit but I suppose there’s loads of time yet ;-)

Nobody tempted by a session with UK Bike Skills or a set of brand new Hope Hoops for £1?

I’m surprised…….

Added to the prize draw by the exceptionally generous Tony (Jedi) Doyle is a voucher (worth £95) for a skills day with UK Bike Skills!

Somebody is going to win a UK Bike Skills coaching session or a set of still boxed Hope wheels or a huge Television etc, for £1. Sounds bonkers but that’s the truth of it. Somebody will donate and £1 of that donation is going to win something worth so much more. Donate just a £1 to this amazing organisation and in August you could be getting an email or a text from me asking for your address because I need to send you your prize!

More prizes being added as the weeks go by.  https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/twintowers540miles

Thank you very much. Every pound is massively appreciated.

I’m reading this as Cyclescheme are going to ‘promote’ Evans etc. but will leave the local bike shops to try and grab a share of the market as best they are able. Or am I reading this wrong?

I’ve had a look at the Cyclescheme website and the only reference to using one of the big retailers is in the “No Quibble” promotion because these dealers will allow the purchase of ‘sale’ items without the cash top up that the smaller stores have to administer to make anything on the transaction.