Austin and Nick at the start of the raceOn Sunday September 11th, a total of 13 cyclists took part in the 54-mile London to Brighton Cycle to raise money for the Greater London Fund for the Blind (GLFB). The team was very special as it included six tandem pairs, made up of one sighted and one visually impaired person each. The pairs did incredibly well, working together to finish the race and raise money for the GLFB. The team are well on the way to raising over £2000, which is great!
The team was made up of members of Merton Sports and Social Club (MSSC), and the Kingston upon Thames Association for the Blind Tandem Scheme. Among the cyclists was Roy Smith MBE, Chairman of Metro Games for blind and partially sighted athletes, and his wife Kathy.
Another of the team, Roy Benjamin, has previously cycled from Land's End to John o' Groats on a tandem. Roy says:
"Cycling is a fantastic form of low impact exercise so why can't visually impaired people take part? Well, of course we can if we have a pair of eyes on the front. Not only is it a good form of exercise but riding tandems is also a very social form of exercise."
After one puncture on the way to the start line, all GLFB cyclists had left Tooting Common by 8:45 a.m. With over 800 other cyclists riding for various charities there was plenty of support along the route.
Together they tackled many hills, including the notorious Ditchling Beacon, and some had to deal with a temperamental tandem which required numerous stops for roadside repair. Finally the six tandems all made it to the seafront in Brighton by 3:45 p.m.
We are really proud of our tandem team - and very excited to support them in any challenges they may take on in the future.
If you wish to support the team with sponsorship, please visit their various pages:
http://www.justgiving.com/londontobrightontandem2011 | http://www.justgiving.com/Austin-Graham | http://www.justgiving.com/NicholasMoffat
If you are interested in tandem cycling, or any other Team GLFB challenges please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
