Hello everyone!
Firstly, let me say… WOW! What an experience the 2023 Ride 4 Life was!
It’s been a couple of weeks and we’ve given it time for the dust to settle, the riders to get some feeling back in their legs and Ryanair to get everyone home safely…
OK, I’m joking about that last one. Despite a brief delay I’ve got nothing but good things to say about Ryanair; they got everyone where they needed to be, it was cheap and actually fairly roomy for economy travel.
But I’m drifting off topic, what about that ride, eh?
The Galway Loop
If you haven’t checked it out yet I’d advise taking a look at the ‘Galway Gallery’ over on the Live page, because practically every location the team passed through on the ride was nothing short of breath-taking.
But what’s more important is the effort the riders put in. 130 miles in under 12 hours is a phenomenal effort and thankfully there were no major incidents and the weather was on their side. Many pints of Guinness were consumed once the ride came to a close (it’d be rude not to, right?) and in the days that followed it was revealed we had raised a MASSIVE £20,000 for Cancer Fund for Children.
Twenty. Thousand. Pounds.
That’s just over 23,000 Euros, which sounds even better and is our second-highest total in Ride 4 Life history.
How Your Donations Help
I mentioned this in the last blog post, but I think it bares repeating here.
Daisy Lodge in Co. Down is a therapeutic short break centre run by Cancer Fund for Children and has been in operation for over 5 years now, offering families dealing with cancer the opportunity to have a short break away from the often hectic schedule that such a diagnosis brings with it.
The breaks also give families access to therapeutic services that can help them deal with their situation both as together and as individuals.
But as amazing as this is, it simply isn’t enough. Over 50 families are on the waiting list for a break at any one time, and there is only capacity for 1 in 7 families to take that all important time away.
This is why CFfC are now in the process of opening a second Daisy Lodge, this time in Co. Mayo. Just like the lodge in Co. Down, this centre will offer that same chance for families to take a break in a safe, relaxing environment and increase the number of families that they are able to help.
The numbers don’t lie either, with over 98% of families saying the whole experience helped to reduce their levels of stress.
Our riders even stopped by the site of the new Daisy Lodge to see it first hand, getting a glimpse of what all their efforts were for. I think it’s fair to say everyone involved felt moved by what CFfC are doing, and it just reinforced the importance of this annual event. Over the years multiple fantastic charities have benefitted from what is essentially a group of colleagues getting together to test their endurance.
I know I’ve said it a thousand times, but it’s also something we can’t say enough… THANK YOU. To everyone who supported the ride this year, whether it was by helping out, spreading the word, contributing to the playlist (which is still on Spotify if anyone wants to relive the magic) or donating generously, thank you so much because none of this would happen each year without you.
Extra special shout out to Gav too, because without his organisational skills it probably wouldn’t happen either! Putting on an event like this is no mean feat, and although he probably won’t appreciate me likening him to the budget airline I mentioned earlier, he always makes sure people get to where they need to be, when they need to be there, and above all makes sure everyone can do that safely.
What Comes Next
Although there have been rumblings of what is in store for The Ride 4 Life 2024 I’m not currently at liberty to reveal what they are right now… however I can reveal that at some point in the near future (when I’m able to wrangle a selection of the riders together) we will be recording very special ‘The Ride 4 Life Podcast’ so perhaps more will be revealed on there!
But until then, I’ll say thank you once again to everyone that joined us.
£20,000… Amazing!