While Paddy McGuinness was cycling through Cumbria on a chopper for Children in Need – the county’s own cycling hero completed his challenge.
Jericho Primary School pupils came out in force to welcome three veteran cyclists complete the final stage of the gruelling challenge to cycle the equivalent height of Mauna Kea, the world’s tallest mountain.
The challenge was the undertaking of Whitehaven’s Gerard McCarten, in memory of his late wife Margaret, who had pursued the target height of 10,205 metres throughout October.
He cycled more than 1,700 laps of his local street and had now reached the final stage of completing the mammoth task.
In support were Mike Cowley, the 1964 Tokyo Olympian and five-time World Championship rider alongside Ged Brear, local multi-champion.
Both riders had been there throughout the four weeks and now faced the final assault alongside Gerard.
Between marshalled ranks of cheering children, the trio rode the final metres of Mauna Kea and, as the summit loomed, the echoing sound of The Grand Old Duke of York rang out from the crowded playground.
Gerard said: “We used the hill up to the school to finish the challenge and the children were already getting lined up and it was absolutely amazing. The noise and the cheering and the shouting and the flag waving. It was great, just a very nice way to bring it altogether.
“It was quite a relief to cross the line in the end, as it’s a question of mind over matter at times out there. But I knew what I needed to do and I enjoyed doing it. For me, whether it’s a little circuit or whether I go out for a ride for an hour or a couple of hours, I just enjoy riding my bike.”
It was an electrifying conclusion to what had been an effort of endurance in aid of sight loss charity, the Macular Society. Through donations to Gerard’s fundraiser, he wants to see more research into a rare genetic eye condition called Sorsby fundus dystrophy (SFD), which his wife Margaret had lived with for 40 years.
He said: “My wife Margaret had her genetic eye disorder so my motivation for doing this particular challenge was to bring more awareness about the condition and the need for research around it.
“Particularly with Sorsby fundus dystrophy, if research can find a way to correct the faulty gene, then that’s the goal I’d like to aim for.”
SFD is an incurable, inherited eye disease which causes sight loss. Symptoms are caused by one of several mutations in a gene called TIMP3, or chromosome 22q, with the mutation causing cells to make a harmful version of the TIMP3 protein.
A Just Giving page for donations remains open. Visit https://www.justgiving.com/page/gerard-mccarten-macular-society
Nearly 1.5 million people are currently affected by macular disease and many more are at risk. The disease can have a devastating effect on people’s lives, leaving them unable to drive, read or see faces.
“Many people affected describe losing their sight as being similar to bereavement. There is still no cure and most types of the disease are not treatable. Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common form of macular disease, affecting more than 700,000 people, usually over the age of 50.
For more information on macular disease, call the Macular Society on 0300 3030 111 or email help@macularsociety.org
A spokesman for the Macular Society said: “Every day, around 300 people are diagnosed with macular disease. It’s the biggest cause of sight loss in the UK. Macular disease is cruel and isolating. It steals your sight, your independence, and your ability to do the things you love.
“It can affect people of any age – even children – but not enough is known about why, and there is still no cure. There is only one way to beat Macular Disease for good. We must fund much more research now, until we find a cure, or find treatments that stop it in its tracks.
Together we can fund the research that will find the cure. Together we can make sure the next generation won’t have their sight, confidence, and love of life stolen from them by macular disease.
