The Bikes Have Departed

Seven Day Countdown - Final Pre-Ride Update

I'd been kind of wondering last night what I'd write about today and up until this afternoon I had no idea, but, that's all changed now thanks to two large donations we've received today.

The first is from Simon Hanson at Goodall Transport Ltd of Sowerby Bridge, who as well as making a donation has also supplied us with refreshments to take along with us. Many thanks to Simon and all the Staff and Goodall Transport Ltd.

The second of the large donations comes from all the customers & staff at the The Rock Inn, Bramley, Leeds. Many thanks to Maureen, landlady of the Rock for arranging the collection which has made a massive boost to our charity funds for Martin House.

So the night before we set off for Whitehaven the great news is we've so far raised a staggering £1,420 plus gift aid, we're told that there is more to come so our thoughts now turn to raising the magical sum of £1,500.

Next of the agenda is being picked up from the Holiday Inn at Brighouse tomorrow night 6pm, from there we'll travel the 3 hours to Whitehaven to get our heads down for the night before we start Friday morning.

My next update should be with pictures of the riders dipping their wheels in the Irish Sea, keep visiting us for more updates!!

Seven Day Countdown - Day 2

The bikes have this evening started arriving ready for pick up on Thursday morning. We've only 3 more bikes to arrive and it would appear at this late stage at least one of those bikes still needs a service.

All support vehicle points have now been plotted and we're almost ready to get this show on the road.

Many thanks to 'Eat Natural' for the deliver this morning, I'm sure the riders will be delighted with them.

Also thanks to Santander for kindly supplying us with t-shirts, caps and banners, much appreciated.

There is still time to sponsor us using the link on the left, also make sure you follow our progress here at www.christopherblackburn.blogspot.com and indeed by following Chris on Twitter www.twitter.com/chrispblackburn

Seven Day Countdown - Day 3

Two days without updates, some much needed rest, however, today we've found out that www.getbuzzing.co.uk have kindly agreed to supply us with some of their products to help us with energy along the way.

The getbuzzing bar is an all-natural ingredients performance supplement (no additives, no colourings, no preservatives) designed to provide energy during athletic activities.

Research carried out at Buckinghamshire New University's Human Performance Lab, led by Dr. Maria Konstantaki (Senior Lecturer in Exercise Physiology), showed that getbuzzing bar enhances endurance performance.

The testing involved ten athletes (five international rugby players, three professional triathletes and two recreational athletes) performing a VO2 max test under two conditions (without, and 1 hour after consuming, a getbuzzing bar). Results showed that endurance performance (time to exhaustion) increased by an average of 25 seconds and perception of effort was lower following consumption of The getbuzzing bar.

These results indicate that The getbuzzing bar is effective in giving athletes and exercisers an 'edge' while providing great nutrition without additives.

You can get getbuzzing bars in Waitrose and Morrisons, they are also in the David Lloyd, Nuffield Health, and lots more up and down the country, make sure you check out their Facebook & Twitter pages!!

Thank you getbuzzing for your kind donation, very much appreciated!

Seven Day Countdown - Day 6

With six days to go today has been a great day, firstly as thing's stand (19:18 Friday 24th June) we're just £20 away from hitting out £1000 target. We're obviously delighted with that but we're going to press on and go for more. Many thanks to all who have donated thus far.

Martin House have today confirmed that they'll send us sports vest's for us to wear throughout our ride and I do believe Pablo is trying to arrange t-shirts to wear in the evening, all hopefully will increase visibility for the cause and will lead to donations whilst we're out riding.

A big thank-you to Morrisons for kindly donating 5 cases of bottled water as well as 2 cases of 'Eat Natural' bars. It's a superb donation to us and I'm sure the produce will keep us going throughout the 3 days. Thanks also to Mandy for arranging this for us via a contact at work.

We now know where our stop off's for the event will be, first night will be spent just east of Seascale with night 2 in Penrith and our final night in Consett. We're staying in a mixture of YHA property's and B&B's all of which look fantastic and have been very reasonably priced.

On the training side of things Chris has completed around 8 miles tackling the gruesome Copley Hill twice in one day. Chris and Tim have also opted for one more big training ride which is due for completion first thing tomorrow morning - I'll keep you posted on how it goes!!

Seven Day Countdown - Day 7

With only 7 days remaining before we begin our epic challenge, we’ll be counting down the days with progress on our sponsorship and preparations. Let me start today by reminding ourselves why we’re taking on the ‘Coast 2 Coast’

Martin House Hospice cares for Children and Young People with progressive life limiting illnesses, and provides support to their families

The vision of Martin House became a reality thanks to the dedication of the Venerable Richard M C Seed, Archdeacon of York, and to the generosity of thousands of people who raised money. The hospice was formally opened by the Duchess of Kent in 1987. The founding Head Nurse, Lenore Hill, was appointed one year prior to the opening. This meant that right from the start she played an integral role in shaping the development of Martin House to fully meet the needs of the children and their families

The impact on a family in which there is a child with a life limiting illness is difficult to imagine, but they are committed to being alongside the children and families in a way which is as flexible as possible. They have worked collaboratively with many different families over the years and they have helped Martin House to develop and fine-tune what they are able to offer, and to expand the range of their services.

Martin House is located in Yorkshire, on the edge of the historic villages of Clifford and Boston Spa, it’s the only hospice for Children and Young people in Yorkshire.

Simon and Chris know firsthand how important a Hospice like Martin House becomes to families in which there is a child with a life limiting illness.

We’re proud to be supporting Martin House!!

16 Riders, 146 Miles, Coast 2 Coast 2011

A Day In Pictures - 19th June 2011

Click On The Image to Enlarge!!

Overgate Mountain Bike Challenge 2011

Overgate Mountain Bike Challenge 2011

At the crack of dawn this morning (19th June), in what will be the final big test before Coast 2 Cost, Chris, Ryan, Claire & Pablo challenged themselves to the Overgate Mountain Bike Challenge, 25 Miles of testing terrain, bridleways & tracks.

Although Ryan, Claire & Pablo had planned on doing this for some time it was a late entry for Chris and with little preparation done through the week due to work commitments, the question on everybody's lips was "would he make it?"

The challenge started at Overgate HQ in Elland and progressed through Holywell Green, Greetland, Copley, Sowerby Bridge, Norland, Barkisland, Scammonden, Outlane, Sowood, Stainland & Blackley before returning to Overgate in Elland.

First past the post was Ryan shortly followed by Pablo, Claire was next to come in & 20 minutes later to a warm welcome Chris did indeed complete the gruelling route.

It was a pleasure to donate to Overgate Hospice, a local charity to all of us that provide specialist palliative care  for adults with life limiting, advanced, progressive illness.

Will I do it again I here you ask - You bet I will, I want to beat my time!!

Last Week Emmerdale - This Week Blackburn, Hanson & Brown

Last week it was Tom Lister (Emmerdale's Carl King) wearing All Terrain cycling kit on the morning programme Daybreak. 
This week it's Chris, Tim & Simon who now have their hands on some fantastic cycling kit courtesy of the All Terrain guys in Shipley.
Many thanks for the kind donation be sure to keep an eye on our blog for pictures of us modelling our posh kit once our journey starts in just 17 days time!!


For more information on All Terrain check out http://www.allterraincycles.co.uk/  

Our First Real Test

We Did It!!!! Chris & Tim along with special guest Ricky B, have indeed today completed their greatest distance yet. Setting off from Manchester City Centre first thing this morning they completed the 35 mile route along the Rochdale Canal to Sowerby Bridge and Copley in around 5 hours (although 1 hour of that can be alocated to a beer in Littlebrough) The canal did'nt provide any great challange in terms of hills but it was nice to have an idea of the distance we'll be covering daily when it comes to the big event!!

SRG Become Our Latest Big Sponsor

Chris, Tim & Simon would like to thank Managing Director Kelly Morton and everybody at SRG for becoming our latest big sponsor.

From scientific and engineering recruitment to outsourced clinical trials and data management, SRG is renowned for providing a skilled, dedicated and specialist service to customers within the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, food and general science based sectors in the UK.

Training Rides In Full Swing

With only 28 days to go before the big event, training rides are now in full swing. 

Ryan White seems to be on a mission to put us all through our paces, Claire's natural fitness shines through so his main efforts appear to be focused on Chris & Tim. 

Tonight's ride in glorious sunshine took us from Holmfield through Bradshaw towards the Raggalds Pub cutting off-road through the back of Queensbury and climbing up to Northowram. From there we all went our separate way 's. 

In total for Chris it was a ride of 16 miles, which comes a day after he completed 10 miles on a off-road route with Neighbours. 

Chris and Tim's next ride will be a gentle 33 miles on the canal from Manchester to Halifax. It'll be the first time either of them have hit the 30 mile plus mark!!