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16

Jun 2023

Last Updated: 16/06/2023
Community
Community

Harrogate cyclist aiming to ride 1,000 km in 48 hours

by Vicky Carr

| 16 Jun, 2023
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A Harrogate business owner will be setting out on the challenge of a lifetime next week, inspired by the people who cared for his late aunt.

Simon Gregory is planning to ride 1,000 kilometres — more than 620 miles — in just 48 hours to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.

His aunt, Rev Ruth Scott, was cared for by a Macmillan nurse after being diagnosed with lymphoma until her death in 2019, aged 60.

Simon is no stranger to challenges, having completed a 288-mile ride in 24 hours in 2021 for the same cause. He told the Stray Ferret:

"The first one I did two years ago was 100% about Ruth. This one has been more about Ruth's journey and a lot about the Macmillan nurse who supported Ruth and us.
"When I did the last ride, people were telling me stories about having cancer or losing people to cancer without that support that Macmillan provide. That just scared the life out of me. I want everyone to be able to get the support Ruth had and that we had."


For this challenge, Simon will head to Ardnamurchan Point in west Scotland, from where he will set off next Friday at noon.

He will cycle the length of Britain, aiming to finish at Winchester Cathedral at noon on Sunday.

The aim of the ride is to raise £25,000 – enough to fund 101 days of care from Macmillan nurses, in tribute to the nurse who cared for Ruth.

The two ends of the route have particular significance to Ruth and her family, he said.

"Some of her ashes are scattered near where I'm starting. The Isle of Mull and Iona were her happy place - somewhere she went to rest and recharge. The rest of the ashes are interred at Winchester."


Simon Gregory and Rev Ruth ScottSimon is completing the ride to raise funds for Macmillan nurses, who supported Rev Ruth Scott.

While the ride itself will be challenging enough, the training has also been gruelling.

Simon has spent long hours on his bike, setting out on rides of up to 20 hours from his home in Harrogate in recent weeks.

Early in his training, he got hypothermia after encountering a freezing hilltop on an otherwise warm day. Last year, he had two operations on his shoulder after shattering his collarbone when his bike slipped on black ice.

He said:

"I've had interesting things, like chains breaking and punctures. A couple of weekends ago I get sun stroke, which was fun.
"There have been hard times. I've got my nutrition wrong and 'bonked', which means there's nothing left in the tank and I've had to lie in a ditch and eat stuff and wait until I could get going again."


Support crew


Fitting all of the training and recovery around his job running a recruitment business with his wife, and spending time with their two young children, has been a challenge – but he says being busy has also helped to keep the nerves at bay.

He has also been given support from his business, Returners' Tribe, Paria, Precision Fuel & Hydration, and Starling bar in Harrogate, whose founder, Simon Midgeley, will be part of the first support crew setting off with Simon to Scotland next Thursday.

As well as offering practical support in shifts en route, the support crews – made up of close friends and family – will keep him focused during the 48-hour challenge. Simon said:

"I think it's going to be very emotional. It's not just about me and Ruth - it's the other people involved in the support team.
"I'm going to be carried by the names of other people: my sponsors have put loved ones' names on the bike, people who have survived cancer or who have supported them through cancer. I've even got the name of a dog who's survived cancer.
"There are 23 names on the bike. Having them with me is going to add to that emotion.
"48 hours is an awfully long time, so it's going to be a whole range of emotions, a whole spectrum of emotions, some I won't expect, some I am anticipating."


To get ready for the event and boost his fundraising, Simon will be on his turbo trainer outside Marks and Spencer on Parliament Street in York tomorrow, collecting donations from shoppers.

To follow Simon's progress on his Instagram page, click here. Find out more about the challenge and donate to his fundraising on his JustGiving page.




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