An 84-year-old veteran road race cyclist is preparing to deliver 10,000 kisses to doctors, nurses and carers!
Gerard McCarten, of Whitehaven, wants to repay the medical profession for the help they have provided him and his wife Margaret over the last two decades.
A target of £500 has been set and proceeds will be divided between Hospice at Home West Cumbria, the ambulance service and Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service.
Gerard says: “Margaret and I owe so much to all the caring professions for their care and dedication over the past two decades and feel the need to say thank you.”
Gerard is surviving prostate cancer, detected at the turn of the century, and then he had a heart arrythmia attack in 2016 while on his regular cycle ride.
Three good Samaritans in Cleator Moor called the emergency services and made sure he remained conscious until they arrived.
He now rides with an ‘angel’ on his shoulder in the form of a defibrillator. His operations were carried out at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle.
In 2020 Margaret was returned home from West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven for palliative care and needed both ambulance and fire crews for the transition, which caused quite a stir for the neighbours.
Margaret remains confined to bed and needs care from the care in the community teams.
At 12.20 on Monday, March 20, using the power of a radio transmitted heartbeats, Gerard aims to cycle for 100 minutes and maintain a heart rate of 100 beats per minute for the duration of his effort.
Riding no further from his front door than 25 metres Gerard will generate 10,000 heartbeats.
Each and every heartbeat will be transmitted over the ethernet to all the doctors, nurses and carers in the community.
Gerard said: “Each heartbeat will be a kiss and a hug from Margaret and myself to say thank you.
“There are two components to a heart trace, I’m told. A cardiosport monitor will transmit the heartbeat and Strava will send the signal worldwide.”
To support Gerard, donate at https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/Gerard-McCarten
