Optimise4

Altarnun Cyclists off to France in support of the Precious Lives Appeal

Starting on June 19th, Dave Whitaker and Paul Whybrew are setting off on their mountain bikes from Altarnun to cycle the west coast of France, raising money for the Precious Lives Appeal, to help fund the new children's hospice, "Little Harbour", at Polpean.

They will take the Plymouth to Santander ferry and catch trains to San Sebastian, about 7 miles from the French border, then cycle all the way up to Roscoff (taking advantage of prevailing winds and keeping the sun mostly behind them) to catch the ferry back to Plymouth. In total they will cycle 750 miles and hope to complete the trip in 10 days, which means covering about 70 miles each day, carrying their camping kit with them! They are planning to camp every night so are hoping for dry weather. One of the keys to success will be carrying as little weight as possible, so they are packing the bare minimum of kit and clothes. Hopefully the camp-sites will have some showers and laundry facilities!

It is hoped that Dave and Paul will be able to call in at the village of Gueltas near, Pontivy in Brittany which is twinned with Altarnun. Paul has never undertaken a cycling challenge of this magnitude, but Dave has cycled from John O'Groats to Land's End so has more experience of this kind of thing. Most of the training for the trip has been in very hilly 35 mile round trips from Altarnun.

The South West based business consultancy Optimise4 Ltd, has generously agreed to sponsor the trip so that all donations will go straight to Precious Lives.

You can make donations online through their page at www.justgiving.com/Paul-Whybrew Radio Cornwall are following their progress, and it is hoped this will encourage a wider audience to support the fundraising.



Paul Whybrew on the left, Dave Whitaker prepare for their challenge