Harry Keam, one of our London-based associates, cycled nearly 1,000 miles in ten days from John O’Groats to Land's End with his university friend in aid of Dementia UK. The pair have raised over £7,000, smashing their fundraising target of £5,000 after receiving support from the Henry Sale Foundation.
The first day of riding was wet, cold, and miserable with the duo battling against headwinds so strong that they were having to pedal to go downhill. They had originally made plans to wild camp, but when the wet weather forced them to stop early, a local woman who had seen them struggling to set up camp offered them the use of her caravan for the night, dried their wet clothes, and provided them with food and drink to help them to refuel for the next day.
Day two proved to be one of the highlights for them, as they passed through the Scottish Highlands with the wall-to-wall sunshine showing the beautiful Scottish landscape at its best. Harry said: “We were riding through the Highlands, I couldn’t quite believe how stunning it all was. I’d not been there before, so to see it on a day like that was special. I think that’s something that I have taken from the challenge – the beautiful parts of Great Britain. We travelled through parts of the country I’d never been to before and now I can’t wait to go back and see them.”
As they continued their journey the constant stream of notifications kept them going, Harry continued: “Seeing those emails come through to say someone had donated was really motivating. We had some really challenging and downright painful times but knowing that people were supporting us and this great cause made it all worth it and really boosted our morale.”
As they passed through more populous parts of the country, they found that their Dementia UK shirts drew attention from people who passed them on the road or people they saw as they took a break. Strangers came up to them and congratulated them on their efforts, shared their own personal experiences of dementia and many handed them cash donations totalling £150.
On their 10th and final day, they set out from Okehampton in Devon to begin their final push down through the length of Cornwall. They had originally planned to take a more scenic route through England’s most southerly county but they decided to go for the most direct approach and took to the A30, a fast, undulating and pretty challenging dual carriageway, straight down the middle of the county.
After having no punctures in the first nine days, day 10 saw five deflations, one of which meant they had to contact a bike repair mechanic in Newquay for assistance. He closed his shop, came to pick them up from the side of the road, repaired their bikes, did not charge for the parts or labour, and then dropped them back at the same point from which he had collected them so they could continue their journey. They finally arrived at Land’s End at 8:30pm. They were blistered and aching, and Harry had even completed the challenge with a grade 3 tear of his hamstring.
Harry said: “We have been blown away by the support of family, friends and colleagues, who’ve helped us raise such an incredible amount of money for this fantastic charity. What really got us though, was the kindness of strangers. Whether that was the people who passed us on the road and then saw us at the next stop, the lady in Scotland who put us up for the night or the bike mechanic who went well out of his way to help us free of charge, and even turned away paying customers at his workshop to help us. That was unreal.
“One final example of this incredible kindness was at a campsite we’d booked. The campsite owner not only provided some cereal bars, fruit, and drinks for us for that day, but they even refunded our booking, allowing us to stay for free so we were able to put this money into the fundraising total. We just couldn’t believe people could be so generous.“
The fundraising total that Harry and David achieved with this challenge exceeds £7,000, this money will be of vital importance to Dementia UK. The Henry Sale Foundation (HSF) was set up in honour of our former Joint Managing Partner, Henry Sale, who sadly passed away in 2013. It aims to enable education and social inclusion through sport and the countryside and supports charitable causes that align with the foundation’s principles.
Advisory Services Divisional Managing Partner and Chairman of the Trustees said: “Harry and David’s huge undertaking represents a lot of our principles, in particular sport and healthy recreation, as well as helping people and charities to help themselves. It is also fantastic to see a Fisher German colleague raising so much money for a very worthy cause and being an advocate for that charity too. The Trustees were all in agreement that this was an excellent way to relate to the company that Henry helped to found, as well as supporting Dementia UK, a very worthy cause.”
Harry said: “We cannot thank the Henry Sale Foundation enough for its very generous contribution. The challenge was extremely tough, but knowing we have been able to raise such a substantial amount of money for Dementia UK is fantastic.”
Click here if you’d like to get donate to Harry and David.
