The club has been raising money for the British Heart Foundation (BHF) to mark the BHF’s 60th Birthday. The club are aiming to complete 60,000 miles during 2021 – that’s the entire length of your circulatory system!
Fourteen club members from the Chester and North Wales area are taking and so far the team have cycled 45,000 miles, so they are well on their way to hitting their goal. They’re also delighted to have raised £1785 of their £2,500 target.
COVID restrictions limiting outdoor activity at the start of the year have added an extra challenge. Many opted to ride indoors, with one member clocking up an epic 800 miles in a week.
Sam Marshall, Chester Road Club (CRC) member said “So many people are affected by heart diseases. A close friend of mine died while we were mountain biking together last summer, so I really wanted to do something to help BHF in his memory. It was a tough start to the year, with snow, floods and lockdown, but the team have shown real commitment. I’m optimistic we’ll make the distance target, but I’d love to overshoot on the fundraising target even more.”
In the North West of England, around 910,000 people are living with heart and circulatory diseases – and shockingly, every 30 minutes, someone in the region dies from one of these conditions.
Leah Goodhind, BHF’s Fundraising Manager, said: “I am absolutely blown away by the support and fundraising efforts of Chester Road Club! 60,000 miles is an epic challenge but what an amazing fundraiser to celebrate the BHF’s 60th Birthday and all money raised will go towards the BHF’s lifesaving research and helping heart patients. We’re incredibly grateful to the club.
“We can only fund research to save and improve lives because of the generous donations of dedicated supporters like Chester Road Club. In addition to the devastating health impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the financial impact has meant our funding for new research has halved this year alone, so the support of the public has simply never been more needed.”
To donate, visit https://www.justgiving.com/team/CRC-BHF6000
