We have seen a few feats of fund raising here at King of the Mountains these last few weeks and take our hats (or helmets) off to Nick and Tay who have both undertaken some incredible efforts for charity.

Nick, with the slick logistical support of Victoria, completed 'Les Cingles de Ventoux'. This is the ascent/descent of Mont Ventoux from all 3 possible sides in just a day, or in Nicks' case, a little over 7 hours, which is pretty incredible. In undertaking the 'Cingles' Nick has raised around £9,000 for Dingley Specialist Centre at Reading Hospital who intend to buy specially adapted bikes for children with disabilities (http://www.justgiving.com/nicksheppard)

A week later, Tay arrived with his father, Brian, to ride the Col du Galibier (which only just opened in time!). Nothing unusual in that, except that he rode it on a bike called a 'Paris Galibier' (http://www.classiclightweights.co.uk/Paris.html) renovated by his dad. Given that the bike was built in the late '40's, you can imagine that the frame weight, crazy geometry and gearing (not to mention the saddle!) were a far cry from the lightweight bikes usually ridden to the top of one of the hardest Hors Categorie climbs in the Alps. Tay managed it though, and in doing so raised a tidy sum towards the renovations of a school he recently visited in Albania.

Finally, Matt, a great friend from our old triathlon club in the UK, who now lives in nearby Grenoble, will be taking part in the Swiss Ironman event in just under a month (3.8km swim, 180km bike, 42km run). He is raising money towards research into finding a cure for his and his wife, Colette's' son, Joseph, who has been diagnosed with an incurable neurological genetic disease called Leukodystrophy, and for others affected by similar demyelinating diseases. His training blog (http://tri4joe.com/) is a frank and often very funny account of his build up to the big day - good luck to you Matt!

See photos below.

Helyn
www.kingofthemountains.co.uk