[C]arlisle-based car and van business Glenrental has come to the rescue of a team of four charity cyclists who are riding from Land’s End to John O’Groats on a double mercy mission.
The quartet of riders, all from Carlisle, are making the 948-mile trek in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support and to raise money for local teenager Michael Johnstone, who had a leg amputated below the knee after being hit by a car in the city in January.
They are already more than half way towards their target of raising £3,000 for the national charity and are aiming to raise a further £1,500 to go towards providing a new prosthetic leg for Michael, 17, a pupil at Caldew School.
And the cyclists – Paul Griffiths, 48, Bill Taylor, 55, Craig Betton, 40, and Grant Ambrose, 38 – acknowledge that the nine-day ride would not have been possible without the sponsorship of Glenrental. The car and van rental business has loaned them a minibus free of charge complete with their own personalised livery to act as support vehicle along the route and get them to the start and back home again.
“Cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats is hard enough but it is virtually impossible for amateur riders like us without a support vehicle to carry kit and spare parts like wheels, which can all go in it,” said Paul, who works for Royal Mail in Carlisle. His son Sam, 17, had been walking with Michael when they were hit by a car near the Pirelli tyre factory on Dalston Road. “Glenrental’s support also means we can concentrate on fund-raising, which is the whole aim,” Paul added.
The charity ride mini bus has been given a unique look by AST Signs of Penrith, emblazoned with details of the two fund-raising causes as well as the riders’ names and even a map of the route, plus a Lejog signpost. It was presented to them on Monday (JULY 10) at Glenrental’s base in James Street, where the keys were handed to team driver Phil Robinson.
“It looks absolutely brilliant. I just hope they can keep up with me,” joked Phil, 63, from Carlisle. He is Grant’s father-in-law.
The cyclists will set off from Carlisle in the mini bus tomorrow (WEDS JULY 12) before starting out on their bikes from Land’s End the following day. They are due to arrive at John O’Groats on Friday next week (JULY 21) but will be home before then, having scheduled in an overnight stop, with barbecue and a sleep in their own beds, at Carlisle on Monday en route to Scotland.
“We are just pleased to have been able to help them achieve their goal of cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise money for two such worthy causes,” said Ryan Williamson, manager at Glenrental.
The LEJOG signpost shows the official distance as 874 miles but by bike, largely avoiding A-roads, the Carlisle quartet’s route is 74 miles longer.
For further information or to make a donation visit: Bill’s LeJog page and Paul Griffiths’s LeJog page.
