Tim Hodgson is one of the 70 cyclists who will be part of Team ITFC at the annual London to Amsterdam Challenge later this week. He tells us how training and fundraising have been going and how to keep up with his progress during the ride.
Friday 12th June sees the Grand Départ of the 2015 London to Amsterdam Challenge, organised by the Football League’s official charity Prostate Cancer UK.
As part of the 70-strong Team ITFC I’ll be making up a peloton of 250 fans from Football League clubs who’ll be cycling 150 miles in 48 hours to raise funds for Prostate Cancer UK and in our case the ITFC Academy.
My Dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer 20 years ago. Thankfully he’s now fully rehabilitated, luckily he had an early diagnosis, but there are people who don’t know the warning signs and this ride will help to raise awareness, and the funds to help tackle it.
Simon Milton’s been the driving (or riding) force behind the trip. He’s done an incredible job, not just logistically, but also by putting together training rides along with Alan Lee to get us up to speed.
While some people might say to never meet your heroes, it was actually very satisfying overtaking Alan on a hill (even if his knee’s knackered).
The fundraising’s gone really well. I’ve been supported throughout by TWTD and The Greyhound pub in Ipswich.
Our We Don’t Wear Yellow T-shirts — after an ill-fated launch outside the Portman Road — sold out before the end of the season. The Greyhound also recently organised a pub quiz to bring the current total up to £2,300.
So, with the big adventure soon to start, a big thank-you to everyone who’s supported me. And if you haven’t already done so, please help by donating here.
You can follow Tim's progress throughout the ride on Twitter here, while he will be posting photos to Instagram here.
In addition to Milton and Lee, former Blues Terry Butcher, Matt Holland and David Johnson are also amongst those taking part in the ride.