Cyclists complete 140-mile ride in three days to help South Tyneside kids - here's how much they raised
Cyclists complete three-day, 140-mile ride to raise cash for South Tyneside kids.
Three cyclists with a combined age of 222 have proved they are not over the hill by completing a mountainous fundraising ride from Cumbria to South Tyneside.
Intrepid husband and wife Jim and Maria Frazer, and friend Marton Kinlen, got on their bikes to pedal 140 miles down dip and up dale in just three days.
In doing so, Jim, 79, Maria, 70 and Martin, 73, raised over £3,000 to pay for summer holiday activities for children in South Shields and Boldon.
Jim and Maria, both retired primary school headteachers, and Martin, a former HGV driver, met through their voluntary work at St Gregory’s Church, at the Nook.
St Gregory’s, along with St Oswald’s, at Whiteleas, and Sacred Heart RC, in Boldon Colliery, combine to run the GOSHOG outreach group, which raises money to improve local lives.
They undertook the ride through their mutual love of life on two wheels – and started at namesake St Gregory The Great Catholic Church in Workington.
Naming their ride the G2G – or Gregory to Gregory – they took their bikes by train to Cumbria, where they met the church’s Father Philip.
The group then set off on a route which combined the accepted Coast to Coast and Hadrian’s Cycle Way.
‘Aim was to focus on young people’
Maria said: “With summer around the corner, the aim was to focus on young people so that activities and outings can be funded to help families through the long school break.
“Jim discovered a while ago that there is a St Gregory’s Church in Workington, so we decided to pedal the G2G – Gregory to Gregory.
“There were lots of climbs but lots of stunning scenery too.
“The Lord was merciful and sent a great deal of sunshine but, unfortunately, until the last day, a ferocious easterly wind was in our faces.
“Those climbs, that wind and those senior legs, was quite a combination.
“Then it was time for cakes and cuppas in the church hall, which was festooned with cycling décor, and bulging with carbohydrates.
“A good time was had by all, and we hope this happiness will be felt by the young people who will benefit from the money raised, bringing joy to their summer break.”
140-mile, three-day route
Before setting off, they presented Father Philip with a framed map copy of their route.
They set off towards Bassenthwaite for a picturesque stay by the lake and then journeyed through the northern Lake District to the Eden Valley.
The village of Brampton was next, before and they followed the route of Hadrian’s Wall through Gilsland and Greenhead, which encompassed a heady climb before a steep descent to Haltwhistle.
Steep climbs followed to Vindolanda and the Stanegate, before a drop down to Hexham and Corbridge and the kinder tranquillity and contours of the Tyne Valley.
On the final day, they were met at Newcastle Quayside by a group of 11 Turkish friends from the city’s Dialogue Society, a charity which advances social cohesion by connecting communities.
The expanded group then pedalled back together to their home at St Gregory’s.
Ride donations can be made at St Gregory’s Church, which holds its next social event from 2pm to 4pm on Wednesday, June 10.