60 miles in our 60th year for Oddballs

Last weekend, 18 team members, friends and family completed the ride around the Wirral to celebrate our 60th year and raise money for the Oddballs Charity.

Of the 18 people in total took on the ride, with 13 completed the extended 60 mile route and five completed the 60 km route. At over 1,400 vertical metres, there was plenty of climbing, to take in the best of the Wirral and visit many of the sites we have worked on through our history.

What was perhaps most interesting was that before the training for the event began in January, only five would have classed themselves as regular cyclists.

Beautifully organised by Lee Williams, the teams set off at different times to bring them back into the post cycle celebrations at Old Anselmians Rugby Club, where a BBQ and beers were provided by the company. It was in fact so well organised that all of the participants arrived back between 13.00-14.00, exactly as planned.

The original aim had been to raise £3,000 for the charity, but as of today, with 89 separate contributors, the total stands at £4,795 and rising. It’s open until the end of the week if you feel compelled to donate.

The OddBalls Foundation is the UK’s leading charity raising awareness of Testicular Cancer. Testicular cancer is the most common form of cancer in men aged 15-49, with around 2,400 new cases in the UK every year, that’s more than six every day. However, if detected early, Testicular Cancer is one of the most curable cancers.

Speaking to Lee, he was delighted about how the whole event had gone.

“The weather was kind and despite some wind against us at the wrong times, conditions were generally mild and gentle. We had a few issues with derailleurs for some reason, with three failing and requiring repair or replacement.

There were three real benefits that I can see, over and above the amount we are raising for the charity.

1. Being outside is great for your health, wellbeing and mental health. All of us felt great at the end of the ride. There were lots of smiling faces, despite the tired legs.

2. It has been good for the business with people from all the different teams working and training together. We are a close knit team anyway, but this was even more icing on the cake.

3. The legacy of this seems to be that lots of the team want to keep cycling and training together. I’m not sure any of us expected that, but it’s great news and it will happen, which is good for all of us.

There is still a few more days left to donate, so if you can, however small an amount, please do contribute something.

Even if you can’t donate, then we would encourage you to have a look at some of oddballs literature and learn how to check yourself. You may be very glad you did.”