I am not going to keep this going for long - I just wanted to put put there that the official 'final' total including 'gift aid' on the paper sponsorship forms was £5,200!!!
Target more than met and more than doubled!
Thank you all so much for everything! We love you all!
Take great care and don't forget our fundraising page www.justgiving.com/joandpenni
Loadsa love, Jo and Penni xxx
Showing posts with label Debbie Purdy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Debbie Purdy. Show all posts
Thursday, 22 October 2009
Thursday, 1 October 2009
And that is, for the moment, the end of that chapter!
Today is October the 1st and it is the day the Justgiving page has closed for business!
Everyone has been so very supportive and extremely generous and we have raised a brillo amount for the MS Trust!
Our initial target was £2,500. This was set by the company who run the challenge and not a number we picked out of thin air, had we done so I don’t think either of us would have set out sights quite as high as that! I think there were a few people who even doubted that we would make £1000 but to them, all I can say is….not publishable and would be frowned upon, so I won’t write it!
Last year, the official amount of money raise for the Trust was £60k towards Information, Research, Education and Support. A large amount of money by anyone’s standard – not however very much when you compare it to the millions that are raised on one night during the telethons of the BBC. When you consider this, it is not unreasonable that there would be a target of £1,250 (minimum) per person and that the expenses for the ride should be paid for by the participant before going – at least with that the whole amount raised goes directly to the charity and as well we know, every penny counts!
As I mentioned all the way through the diary, people were giving constantly through the training, we held a number of fundraising activities and soon we had met and exceeded the official target, from then on, everything else was a bonus! As time went on and people kept giving we decided that we wouldn’t stop fundraising and we wouldn’t stop asking for money, it is not a very easy thing to do but this charity is so very important to my family and I that we just kept on; because of this the target was always being ‘upped’ and soon we were £1000 over the target!
Even when I came home from Paris and the trip had not been as successful as I wanted, although I was honest and told people that I had failed to do it, people still gave money to the cause – as I say, everyone has and continues to be amazingly generous!
Considering the kindness, it is no surprise that from a fundraising point of view this venture was a success! It makes all the difficult times throughout the training, the lonely feelings when Penni moved to Birmingham, the devastation both Penni and I felt when she wasn’t able to take part with me (although for an amazing reason which should be here 2 months today!) the muscle strains, the early mornings and late evenings at the gym, the early morning road rides in the freezing weather through the winter and the feeling of complete ‘Wallyness’ for subjecting the people of the Vale of Glamorgan to the sight of me in not only Lycra but padded shorts as well – all worthwhile! (But I still don’t know what I am going to do with 4 pairs of padded shorts!)
So, I guess you have listened to me rabbit away for long enough and want to know how much we raised. So, online, our amount raised was £1,863; Offline the amount raised was £2,437 and the gift aid from online donation was £460.59. So not counting the gift aid that will have been added from the paper forms we sent in, (donations from people off line,) our combined total was £4,760.59 – 59p is very important when every penny counts!
Thank you all again for everything, for being such fab, generous wonderful friends – we love you all loads!
And, until the next time;
Take great care,
Loadsa love, Jo xxx
Everyone has been so very supportive and extremely generous and we have raised a brillo amount for the MS Trust!
Our initial target was £2,500. This was set by the company who run the challenge and not a number we picked out of thin air, had we done so I don’t think either of us would have set out sights quite as high as that! I think there were a few people who even doubted that we would make £1000 but to them, all I can say is….not publishable and would be frowned upon, so I won’t write it!
Last year, the official amount of money raise for the Trust was £60k towards Information, Research, Education and Support. A large amount of money by anyone’s standard – not however very much when you compare it to the millions that are raised on one night during the telethons of the BBC. When you consider this, it is not unreasonable that there would be a target of £1,250 (minimum) per person and that the expenses for the ride should be paid for by the participant before going – at least with that the whole amount raised goes directly to the charity and as well we know, every penny counts!
As I mentioned all the way through the diary, people were giving constantly through the training, we held a number of fundraising activities and soon we had met and exceeded the official target, from then on, everything else was a bonus! As time went on and people kept giving we decided that we wouldn’t stop fundraising and we wouldn’t stop asking for money, it is not a very easy thing to do but this charity is so very important to my family and I that we just kept on; because of this the target was always being ‘upped’ and soon we were £1000 over the target!
Even when I came home from Paris and the trip had not been as successful as I wanted, although I was honest and told people that I had failed to do it, people still gave money to the cause – as I say, everyone has and continues to be amazingly generous!
Considering the kindness, it is no surprise that from a fundraising point of view this venture was a success! It makes all the difficult times throughout the training, the lonely feelings when Penni moved to Birmingham, the devastation both Penni and I felt when she wasn’t able to take part with me (although for an amazing reason which should be here 2 months today!) the muscle strains, the early mornings and late evenings at the gym, the early morning road rides in the freezing weather through the winter and the feeling of complete ‘Wallyness’ for subjecting the people of the Vale of Glamorgan to the sight of me in not only Lycra but padded shorts as well – all worthwhile! (But I still don’t know what I am going to do with 4 pairs of padded shorts!)
So, I guess you have listened to me rabbit away for long enough and want to know how much we raised. So, online, our amount raised was £1,863; Offline the amount raised was £2,437 and the gift aid from online donation was £460.59. So not counting the gift aid that will have been added from the paper forms we sent in, (donations from people off line,) our combined total was £4,760.59 – 59p is very important when every penny counts!
Thank you all again for everything, for being such fab, generous wonderful friends – we love you all loads!
And, until the next time;
Take great care,
Loadsa love, Jo xxx
Monday, 6 July 2009
Back in Blighty
There are a number of reasons why I wanted to do this challenge, I wanted to raise as much money as I could for the MS Trust, I wanted to raise the profile of the disease and show it in a positive way rather than the extremist and over indulgent press that has been seen in recent months with the high profile court cases of Debbie Purdy.
There were a number of reasons why I shouldn’t have ever thought about doing this challenge, I hadn’t ridden a bike in 15 years, I am not the sporty or athletic type at all and balance is a problem for me.
So, Tuesday June the 30th. We set off for London Penni, my mum, my dad and I. Loaded the bike and bags into the car and off we set. The weather was reasonably OK when we left, warm but not too bad, however, when we got to London the sun was blisteringly hot; still we checked into the hotel, stored the bike and tried to get comfortable. This was impossible and as the perfect start to the trip – we could none of us sleep because of the heat, lack of air, humidity and worry for the next day.
Wednesday, July the 1st and registration was at 6am on the heath opposite the hotel, breakfast between 6.15-40 and a briefing on the common from 6.45 until the off at 7am. The night before, we had gone for a meal as the sun was setting and as I looked at the direction in which it was, I had a clearer picture of the direction I would be travelling the next day, after all, Dover is south east isn’t it? You can imagine my dismay when instead of setting off in that direction we went the complete opposite and went north east – I think it was at that point I began to realise that we were being sent the most difficult of routes rather than the most direct. I didn’t imagine that we would be cycling along the M20 but I assumed that there would be some kind of parallel (direct) road that we could use.
The heat was unbelievable, the route was ridiculous and the promised front and back marker cyclists were non existent! It was quite an eventful morning. My chain came off twice trying to sort out the gears to get me up the ‘undulations’ (not the hills) and as I got to the top of the worst one of the day so one of the racing snake figures/ die hard cyclists who had gone sprinting off at the beginning of the day appeared at the top, covered in blood and scratched and cut to ribbons. He had gone down the wrong road and the bike that he had (a road bike) had calliper brakes which hadn’t been able to stop him and he had come off the bike and fallen 20 feet through brush, gravel and smashed into a tree. Although I didn’t know this man and I had just got to the top of a really spiteful hill (by Detling) I felt that had I been in the same situation I would have liked someone to stay with me so I and another guy that I was cycling with at the time went with him to the bottom of the hill to phone the support vehicle.
When the van arrived I met the team doctor for the first time. A nice guy called Derick who was at that point more worried than I was about the weather, my condition, the humidity and the way that they might (or may not) work together. The afternoon was less eventful; the route was as ridiculous as it was in the morning up single track roads and terrains, up unbelievably steep hills in increasing heat and humidity.
I got to Dover, day 1 done – and so was I. It was at this point that the doctor I had met earlier advised me that because of the heat in this country and the forecast for the next few days in France, I should stop the ride. I could carry on if I didn’t want his advice, but if I did that and rode against his advise, my insurance would be invalidated. I can’t remember when, if ever I have been more upset, disappointed or angry in my life. My overall fitness has not been this good for years, my general strength has increased 10 times since I have been training (one of the reasons (perhaps) I haven’t had a relapse which has meant me being off work for 18 months) and if we had had last year’s summer this year I know I would have been fine.
As you know I haven’t been one to sit in my pity pot for too long over things to do with this illness but this is one reason I would crawl into it, put the lid on and not come out for a hell of a long time.
I will get on to the more serious matters in a moment, but it was such a pants time I don’t think I can’t tell you about the (slightly) funny aspects of things. (Although it wasn’t funny at the time!) Because of having to retire at Dover, my bag had already gone to France, along with my contact lenses and glasses, all I had to help me see were the daily lenses I was wearing, my medication – 3 injections worth of Beta Interferon, all my clothes had also gone and all I had were the lycra t-shirt and padded shorts I stood up in, as had my wallet with my Barclaycard all my cash bar £60 and €35 but as luck would have it, I did have my passport as I had to keep that in my ‘bum-bag’ for the ferry that day! So a quick trip to M&S to buy pants and clothes, Boots to try (to no avail) to get some more contact lenses (thank goodness for Specsavers the next day) and a toothbrush, Penni to rush to the bank to arrange some cash for me to borrow and mum to book me a ticket on the Euro-star. I had decided that as they had all booked and paid for a to Paris for the next few days and David had also arranged a trip over on the Saturday to see the bike ride finish, and as I had arranged some time off work that I would go with them all and see the ride come in and collect my bag while I was there.
On the Saturday, Dave, mum, dad, Penni and I were having lunch at a little bistro by the Eiffel Tower when Penni spotted two guys in Discovery Adventure t-shirts! Dave and I ran over to them to ask what the best thing to do to get my bag back. They spoke to the main organiser of the day (and other Dave) and were told to ‘rock up’ to the meeting place but the fountain at the front of the tower at about 3pm and meet the ride. As I had already decided that I wanted to see it finish this was perfect. When we got there I saw one of the girls I had met on Wednesday who was very kind and said that everyone was so excited and pleased that I had gone to Paris – I was to touched for words but nothing prepared me for the emotion I felt as I saw the bikes come around the island and stop in front of the tower, I felt such a mixture of emotions, I was so proud of the guys who had completed the ride, I was gutted that I wasn’t able to do it with them and the knowledge that I probably never will be able to do it was almost unbearable. When Dave (the organiser), Laura (the administrator) and Derick the doctor came over to where I was with a London to Paris t-shirt and “said put it on and get in the photo” I nearly died! It was something I hadn’t ever expected to happen and wasn’t the reason I was there – it was so out of the blue that once again the emotion overcame me.
So how should I look at this? 300 miles will always be a challenge but 300 miles in a 100˚ heat wave is even more of a challenge and when you couple with this the route which we were given and the humidity that usually comes with the warmer weather in this part of the world it makes for an even more difficult time is one way. I fought the disease and the disease won – and perhaps I should listen to people like Debby Purdy rather than trying to show everyone that things can be different is another way but I am trying to be as positive as I can, Penni and I have decided that after she has had the baby, after my wedding and when the weather is not as hot (probably next autumn) we will ride our bike from Barry to St David’s in west Wales. It doesn’t have the same impact as London to Paris but it will be 150 miles and we will both be doing it.
As it is, am I allowed to say that I got to Paris, it wasn’t on a bike as I had planned but of all the things that I can battle and fight, as much as I would like to I can’t control the weather and I can’t fight a disease that reacts badly to humidity. I can try, but we all know what will happen and what good would it do putting myself into relapse and missing my mate’s party on the weekend and my mate’s wedding in Tunisia the week after? Perhaps this is a bit selfish and not quite accurate but I did put my MS Trust t-shirt on and stand in front of the tower for a photo because although it wasn’t on a bike, I got to Paris and I (and Penni) raised at the last count £4,009 for the charity; four thousand pounds more than they would have had if we hadn’t decided that we would try this challenge.
I won’t be begging anymore as I really don’t think that I can (and although your donations have already gone to the charity, if you want the sponsorship money back please let me know) but I hope that the promise that both Penni and I will ride 150 miles in cooler weather and the 90 miles from Wednesday will be symbolic enough for you to keep your donation to the MS Trust. And if you want to give anyway or know anyone who does the online donation page is open until October.
So thank you everyone for your support over the last year – it has been one of the most inspiring things ever and it has really helped me with training and fundraising to know that you have been behind me.
So, until the next time; take great care and don't forget our fundraising page www.justgiving.com/joandpenni
Loadsa love, Jx
There were a number of reasons why I shouldn’t have ever thought about doing this challenge, I hadn’t ridden a bike in 15 years, I am not the sporty or athletic type at all and balance is a problem for me.
So, Tuesday June the 30th. We set off for London Penni, my mum, my dad and I. Loaded the bike and bags into the car and off we set. The weather was reasonably OK when we left, warm but not too bad, however, when we got to London the sun was blisteringly hot; still we checked into the hotel, stored the bike and tried to get comfortable. This was impossible and as the perfect start to the trip – we could none of us sleep because of the heat, lack of air, humidity and worry for the next day.
Wednesday, July the 1st and registration was at 6am on the heath opposite the hotel, breakfast between 6.15-40 and a briefing on the common from 6.45 until the off at 7am. The night before, we had gone for a meal as the sun was setting and as I looked at the direction in which it was, I had a clearer picture of the direction I would be travelling the next day, after all, Dover is south east isn’t it? You can imagine my dismay when instead of setting off in that direction we went the complete opposite and went north east – I think it was at that point I began to realise that we were being sent the most difficult of routes rather than the most direct. I didn’t imagine that we would be cycling along the M20 but I assumed that there would be some kind of parallel (direct) road that we could use.
The heat was unbelievable, the route was ridiculous and the promised front and back marker cyclists were non existent! It was quite an eventful morning. My chain came off twice trying to sort out the gears to get me up the ‘undulations’ (not the hills) and as I got to the top of the worst one of the day so one of the racing snake figures/ die hard cyclists who had gone sprinting off at the beginning of the day appeared at the top, covered in blood and scratched and cut to ribbons. He had gone down the wrong road and the bike that he had (a road bike) had calliper brakes which hadn’t been able to stop him and he had come off the bike and fallen 20 feet through brush, gravel and smashed into a tree. Although I didn’t know this man and I had just got to the top of a really spiteful hill (by Detling) I felt that had I been in the same situation I would have liked someone to stay with me so I and another guy that I was cycling with at the time went with him to the bottom of the hill to phone the support vehicle.
When the van arrived I met the team doctor for the first time. A nice guy called Derick who was at that point more worried than I was about the weather, my condition, the humidity and the way that they might (or may not) work together. The afternoon was less eventful; the route was as ridiculous as it was in the morning up single track roads and terrains, up unbelievably steep hills in increasing heat and humidity.
I got to Dover, day 1 done – and so was I. It was at this point that the doctor I had met earlier advised me that because of the heat in this country and the forecast for the next few days in France, I should stop the ride. I could carry on if I didn’t want his advice, but if I did that and rode against his advise, my insurance would be invalidated. I can’t remember when, if ever I have been more upset, disappointed or angry in my life. My overall fitness has not been this good for years, my general strength has increased 10 times since I have been training (one of the reasons (perhaps) I haven’t had a relapse which has meant me being off work for 18 months) and if we had had last year’s summer this year I know I would have been fine.
As you know I haven’t been one to sit in my pity pot for too long over things to do with this illness but this is one reason I would crawl into it, put the lid on and not come out for a hell of a long time.
I will get on to the more serious matters in a moment, but it was such a pants time I don’t think I can’t tell you about the (slightly) funny aspects of things. (Although it wasn’t funny at the time!) Because of having to retire at Dover, my bag had already gone to France, along with my contact lenses and glasses, all I had to help me see were the daily lenses I was wearing, my medication – 3 injections worth of Beta Interferon, all my clothes had also gone and all I had were the lycra t-shirt and padded shorts I stood up in, as had my wallet with my Barclaycard all my cash bar £60 and €35 but as luck would have it, I did have my passport as I had to keep that in my ‘bum-bag’ for the ferry that day! So a quick trip to M&S to buy pants and clothes, Boots to try (to no avail) to get some more contact lenses (thank goodness for Specsavers the next day) and a toothbrush, Penni to rush to the bank to arrange some cash for me to borrow and mum to book me a ticket on the Euro-star. I had decided that as they had all booked and paid for a to Paris for the next few days and David had also arranged a trip over on the Saturday to see the bike ride finish, and as I had arranged some time off work that I would go with them all and see the ride come in and collect my bag while I was there.
On the Saturday, Dave, mum, dad, Penni and I were having lunch at a little bistro by the Eiffel Tower when Penni spotted two guys in Discovery Adventure t-shirts! Dave and I ran over to them to ask what the best thing to do to get my bag back. They spoke to the main organiser of the day (and other Dave) and were told to ‘rock up’ to the meeting place but the fountain at the front of the tower at about 3pm and meet the ride. As I had already decided that I wanted to see it finish this was perfect. When we got there I saw one of the girls I had met on Wednesday who was very kind and said that everyone was so excited and pleased that I had gone to Paris – I was to touched for words but nothing prepared me for the emotion I felt as I saw the bikes come around the island and stop in front of the tower, I felt such a mixture of emotions, I was so proud of the guys who had completed the ride, I was gutted that I wasn’t able to do it with them and the knowledge that I probably never will be able to do it was almost unbearable. When Dave (the organiser), Laura (the administrator) and Derick the doctor came over to where I was with a London to Paris t-shirt and “said put it on and get in the photo” I nearly died! It was something I hadn’t ever expected to happen and wasn’t the reason I was there – it was so out of the blue that once again the emotion overcame me.
So how should I look at this? 300 miles will always be a challenge but 300 miles in a 100˚ heat wave is even more of a challenge and when you couple with this the route which we were given and the humidity that usually comes with the warmer weather in this part of the world it makes for an even more difficult time is one way. I fought the disease and the disease won – and perhaps I should listen to people like Debby Purdy rather than trying to show everyone that things can be different is another way but I am trying to be as positive as I can, Penni and I have decided that after she has had the baby, after my wedding and when the weather is not as hot (probably next autumn) we will ride our bike from Barry to St David’s in west Wales. It doesn’t have the same impact as London to Paris but it will be 150 miles and we will both be doing it.
As it is, am I allowed to say that I got to Paris, it wasn’t on a bike as I had planned but of all the things that I can battle and fight, as much as I would like to I can’t control the weather and I can’t fight a disease that reacts badly to humidity. I can try, but we all know what will happen and what good would it do putting myself into relapse and missing my mate’s party on the weekend and my mate’s wedding in Tunisia the week after? Perhaps this is a bit selfish and not quite accurate but I did put my MS Trust t-shirt on and stand in front of the tower for a photo because although it wasn’t on a bike, I got to Paris and I (and Penni) raised at the last count £4,009 for the charity; four thousand pounds more than they would have had if we hadn’t decided that we would try this challenge.
I won’t be begging anymore as I really don’t think that I can (and although your donations have already gone to the charity, if you want the sponsorship money back please let me know) but I hope that the promise that both Penni and I will ride 150 miles in cooler weather and the 90 miles from Wednesday will be symbolic enough for you to keep your donation to the MS Trust. And if you want to give anyway or know anyone who does the online donation page is open until October.
So thank you everyone for your support over the last year – it has been one of the most inspiring things ever and it has really helped me with training and fundraising to know that you have been behind me.
So, until the next time; take great care and don't forget our fundraising page www.justgiving.com/joandpenni
Loadsa love, Jx
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