News / cycling
Secondary school teacher and two engineers taking on Tour de France route
Three amateur cyclists are gearing up to take on the Tour de France route all in the name of charity.
The team, consisting of one secondary school teacher and two engineers, will be fully self-supported, with no vehicle support on their epic 4529km ride.
They will be cycling their tour bikes an average of 200km a day, which is the equivalent of Bristol to London each day.
is needed now More than ever
The hills they will encounter (62321 metres vertical in total) will be the same as cycling up Park Street 100 times a day, every day for the duration of the ride.
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They will be attempting to complete the route in 23 days – the same amount of time as the actual Tour de France race, which will commence 10 days before the start of their journey.
The Tour de France route starts in the north of Spain, Bilbao and snakes across and up France, visiting all five of France’s mountain ranges, before finishing in Paris.
“Tour de France is the ultimate cycling challenge but it’s rarely been attempted by amateurs like us, in this way before.”, said Rory, a school teacher from Staple Hill.
Rory said himself and his team mates, who are currently training in France, are preparing for the challenge by “riding our bikes loads and trying to practise eating croissants and baguettes as much as possible. It’s a hard life.”
The trio, who will be camping the entire way, say with all their camping equipment loaded up – their bikes will each weigh about 15kg.
The men, from Bishopston, Mangotsfield and Staple Hill are taking part in the challenge in aid of PROPS, a Bristol-based charity which supports adults with learning disabilities to achieve their full potential in the community by providing practical learning, skills development and work-based experiences.
Just over £500 has been raised so far out of their £1,000 fundraising target.
Rory added: “We wanted to support a small, local charity that makes a real difference.
“We heard they needed help raising funds to build a cafe for adults with learning disabilities which sounded incredible, and knowing that PROPS does so much to support disabled people with cycling was a big bonus.
“They have their own inclusive cycling club and run a 100 plus person Bristol to Bordeaux cycle every year, which includes some of the adults with learning disabilities they support.”
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Konna Beeson, fundraising manager at PROPS, said the donations raised from the ride will help in giving the charity a financial boost so they can build a high street cafe in Fishponds “to train and employ our trainees for years to come, helping to build equality, and eliminate stigma, from the ground up.”
The fundraising cyclists still have lots of time to raise money for the PROPS and will set off on their adventure on July 11.
To donate to their page, visit: www.propsbristol.org/tour-de-france-2023
To keep up to date with their journey you can follow their Instagram page.
Main photo: Rory, Ben and Sean
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