Dads on bikes for brain charity (From Gazette Series)

Dads on bikes for brain charity

3:53pm Friday 27th July 2007 in News By Jeff Weaver

IT seemed like a good idea in the pub - across the Alps on pushbikes to help Thornbury-based charity Hammer Out Brain Tumours.

Jim Constable, John Watt, Geoff Longstreath and Mark Thompson, four dads with youngsters at the town's St Mary's Primary School, put their fitness to the test for a good cause by completing an uphill/downhill slog from Geneva to Nice.

Back at home four wives held their own fundraising event- involving food, wine and very little exercise - and between them the four couples raised more than £2,000 for brain tumour research and to support sufferers and their families.

Mark Thompson said: "It started as a silly idea hatched in The Wheatsheaf in the winter and grew into a daunting reality.

"The aim was to take four days to do the ride or we would miss the cheap flight home. Accommodation was a selection of hotels - not pre-booked, which allowed us to stop when it felt right or when we just couldn't go any further. We cycled over 450kms, taking in five high passes including Galibier, the nastiest in the Tour de France, at 8681ft and La Bonnette, the highest in Europe at 9193ft.

"Finally, we had an exhilarating 110km descent to the beach in Nice where we had time for a swim and a beer in the hour and a half spare before the flight home."

Anyone wishing to sponsor the pedalpushing dads can do so by visiting www.justgiving.com