Charity – Only Girl In The Club

When I finished the Prudential Ride London event last August I wasn’t sure I could do it again. The event clashed with the tail end of hurricane Bertha, heavy rain and strong winds were forecast but it wasn’t the weather that put me off.

I’ve taken part in the event in 2013 and 2014 and I thought I should give everyone a rest for 2015. The event means quite a lot to me, I got back on my bike to train for the inaugural event in 2013 when Savannah was just a few weeks old. I’d gone from fearing the broom wagon to confidence that got me across the finish line in 5hrs 27mins. I hadn’t ridden a century before this day, my longest distance ever on my bike before this was 74 miles. Last year I chose to ride again for Bliss, the official event charity for 2014. Bliss cares for babies born too soon, too sick and too small. My Mum lost a baby, my sister was still born so I wanted to support this amazing charity and help them continue their great work. After my daughter Savannah was born and I was ready to get back on my bike my Mum drove me around the local roads, helped me plot out routes and showed me where the good hills were. I grew up in the area but I’d lived away for 20 years so I needed a refresher. My Mum actively encouraged me to start riding again and has been my biggest supporter and helper to keep riding and even more so now I’m a single parent.

The summer of 2014 had been busy at work but somehow I’d managed to squeeze in my training time and I was enjoying increased fitness with my new bike. I get up before work and ride in the early morning, it’s a really special time to be out and I think seeing the sunrise is a great way to start the day. I was away for an extended period in Glasgow working at the Commonwealth Games so I hired a bike and managed to get some miles in there too but when I crossed the finish line in 2014 I was empty.

In April as my training was building up and my fundraising for Bliss started to grow my friend and Savannah’s godmother also lost her baby, she was 38 weeks pregnant, in touching distance of holding her baby for the first time. Fiona was at her final midwife check and they couldn’t find a heartbeat, Fiona and Oli’s baby had died. After receiving the terrible news Fiona had to spend the next few days carrying her baby inside her, knowing he wasn’t alive, she was advised it was safer to give birth naturally.

I was in Malta, working when I heard the news, I was boarding a plane to come home and I cried all the way home. I cried for Fiona and Oli and I cried for Sienna their daughter. I remember being that little girl, losing a sibling and not understanding or knowing what was happening around me.

Some weeks after Fiona and Oli announced their tragic news they announced their plans for Sebastian’s Hero’s. They’d selected 99 people, chosen people that had reached out to offer comfort and support in their time of need. Those 99 people were asked to each raise £99 for a charity and also do a good deed. I’d been selected as one of Sebastian’s Hero’s so I chose to add Sebastian’s name to my Ride 100 jersey and ride in his honor.

As I rode through the torrential rain last August all I could think about was Fiona and her amazing strength and bravery. The weather that day was horrendous, it was so bad the organisers took the hills out of the course and shortened the distance to 86 miles from 100 miles. I’ve ridden in bad weather, my ride in Yorkshire just a couple months previous was quite a similar day but I’d never ridden in bad weather at the speed I rode that day, my average at the end of the event was just over 20mph. What kept me going (when it felt like someone was throwing a bucket of water in my face for 4hrs) was Fiona. She has experienced something so devastating it’s beyond my own words to even try and describe. As the rain came down there were sections where I added to it with my own tears. Everyone had such high hopes for me; they had expectations that I would ride a good time but all I could think about was Fiona and the pain she’s been through. They’ve had all the checks done, a postmortem and nothing could be found it was simply one of life’s mysteries.

So a few weeks ago one of those Congratulations you’re in magazines dropped through my letterbox. The event is brilliant, it’s so well organised, raises millions for charities and offers cyclists a magical experience of riding on closed roads with thousands of spectators cheering you along. I filled out that ballot form again and I’ve been lucky enough to be selected. Fiona and Oli have built a wonderful legacy for their little boy and it was an honor to be part of that. Sebastian never managed to breath life on this earth but he has left a very long, lasting impression thanks to his amazing parents and their incredible courage. In 2015 I will carry his spirit with me once again as I set off on this cycling adventure.

This video was created to commemorate the activities of Sebastian’s Hero’s

Fiona was brave enough to share her story with a national newspaper to help raise awareness of still births. Every bit of money raised for Sebastian’s Heroes has gone to supporting families having to endure similar tragedies and to the research into stillbirth and the prevention of it happening to others families. You can read her story here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2776740/I-nine-months-pregnant-baby-lost-heartbeat-Brave-mother-opens-late-stage-stillbirth-dealt-traumatic-aftermath.html

Fiona, Sienna and Savannah chilling by the river

Checking out the start line for the 2014 Ride 100

With a 04:00 alarm call I didn't get much sleep, can you tell? Prudential Ride 100 2014 — With a 04:00 alarm call I didn’t get much sleep, can you tell? Prudential Ride 100 2014

At the start - Prudential Ride 100 2014 - meeting up with another Bliss rider — At the start – Prudential Ride 100 2014 – meeting up with another Bliss rider

At the start - Prudential Ride 100 2014 - before the rain came — At the start – Prudential Ride 100 2014 – before the rain came

Prudential Ride 100 2014 in the crazy weather

Going for it - Prudential Ride 100 2014 — Going for it – Prudential Ride 100 2014

I'd hit 1 pot hole too many, with just 9 miles to go I got a front puncture and this photographer captured the moment — I’d hit 1 pot hole too many, with just 9 miles to go I got a front puncture and this photographer captured the moment

Pulling off to the side with a sad face, my sub 4hrs mission is over

We really did ride through rivers - Prudential Ride 100 2014 — We really did ride through rivers – Prudential Ride 100 2014

My iPhone didn't recover but I did — My iPhone didn’t recover but I did

Celebrating Mummy's success Prudential Ride 100 2014 — Celebrating Mummy’s success Prudential Ride 100 2014

The finisher certificate - Prudential Ride 100 2014 — The finisher certificate – Prudential Ride 100 2014

I entered the ballot for Ride 100 again, for a place in the 2014 event. After months of waiting, in February they announced the results and unfortunately for me my application wasn’t successful this year. I was disappointed, it was such a great event and I wanted to experience it again. I wanted to start from fit and see how much I could improve, could I improve? Was my success last year driven by determination to get fit again? Could I find that same determination to keep going at 70 miles when my body wanted to stop if I didn’t have a strong enough reason to do it?

I gave this a lot of thought and I decided it was for the best. I’d had my moment and it had been a great one. The memories of Ride100 2013 will live with me forever. Riding down The Mall, the finish is one of the greatest moments in my life. Everything had come together for me and the hard worked had paid off. I thought I’d put this event away in my mind and agreed it was over. It was too much pressure on my family too, all the training, all the baby-sitting.

So I went off to the London Bike Show, I wasn’t even thinking about Ride London that was buried, forgotten but as I walked around the show and noticed all the charities promoting their places the memories of that day started creeping back in to my mind. I started looking around at the charities and wondering which one would capture my heart, maybe I could ride for a charity.

I spoke to a few charities that day but I didn’t take a place. None of them really meant anything to me and I knew, to raise the money my story had to be compelling. On the Monday after the bike show I received an email from Prudential Ride London Surrey 100 announcing that Bliss would be the official charity of the event this year. It detailed if you were interested in riding for Bliss you should contact them for a place. I knew a little bit about Bliss’s work. The causes they raise money for has touched my life on several occasions. My friend went in to emergency labour at 25 weeks and I watched her baby grow from a tiny acorn to a beautiful toddler. Another friend had twins, again by emergency c section at 28 weeks. They were again miracle babies, born decades earlier they wouldn’t be here now but they are big strong boys, living a very normal life.

My Mum sadly lost a baby; she would’ve been my baby sister. It was a long time ago but I know she still keeps a place in her heart for her baby. I only really know this now I’m a mother. I really understand what a Mother’s love is. Without my Mums support, encouragement and strength I would not of been able to cross that finish line in 2013 the way I did. She is the most selfless person I’ve met in my lifetime. Always putting others before her. She gave up her own free time last year to allow me to train, to go out on my bike for hours to get fit again. She actively encouraged me to do it. She drove me to London for my training sessions with Reza and she was there waiting for me on the finish line when the race ended. When my Mum lost her baby Bliss didn’t exist, no real support existed. She had to come home and just carry on her life as if it had never changed; she had 4 children at home who were too young to really understand what was going on. I have a strong memory of her crying a lot, this was an age when we didn’t really share what was happening the way we do now.

I’m riding this year for Bliss, for my Mum for my sister that never got to breath life on this earth. My Mum inspires me to be strong, to go after the things in life that I want, to achieve my dreams and be happy.

My Mum lost her own mother so tragically in a cycling accident. It happened in Ireland in 1977 where my Mum was born. My Grandmother, she went out to the shops on her bike and sadly she never came back. Someone that was over the limit with alcohol took her life but it was before any laws existed to try and prevent this from happening. Although I don’t have any real memories of my Grandmother, I was only 2 when she died I do know she was an incredibly strong lady. She brought 15 children in to this world. Only 4 of those babies were born in a hospital, 11 at home. Sarah the youngest was born when my Grandmother was 45 years old. This was Ireland in the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s. My Mum has 8 bothers and 6 sisters, our family isn’t your average family but I love it. We’re spread all across the world but we’re quite close and keep in contact with parties and now with social media. We can all stay in touch with new births, special occasions etc. by sharing photos and messages so easily. I always feel a little part of my Grandmother is with me when I’m on my bike, she gives me the strength to keep going and dig deep.

Riding for Bliss, being part of their team has been a wonderful experience for me. Bliss set up a Facebook page for all their riders and we’ve become a great community on there. Helping each other with tips, advice and support. Some of the riders who live near each other meet up and ride out together on training rides. It’s been a completely different experience to last year, just entering the ballot and riding for myself was sometimes a very lonely one. This year I’ve been part of a big team, a really great team of people with a common aim of raising money for this great charity and achieving a cycling goal of riding 100 miles.

Bliss invited me to a very special, training event in London at The Athlete Lab, a state of the art cycling training facility. If my ballot entry were successful in 2014 this day would never have happened. It was a unique opportunity given to me as a Bliss rider. Olympic cycling Champion Laura Trott hosted the event; it was a cycling master class with her. It was an honour to be sat on the bike next to Laura, this gave me the opportunity to speak to her and we exchanged stories of what it felt like to ride down The Mall in front of large crowds and how exciting that was. Laura was born premature, something I didn’t know about her. On the day of the training event, as you would expect Laura was lovely, full of advice and happy to talk to all of the riders.

I’m riding this year for Bliss and helping to raise money for this wonderful charity for babies born too soon, too small and too sick.

If you’d like to make a donation to help Bliss carry on their work you can visit my Virgin Giving Page

Category: Charity

The journey of cycling

Riding a bike is Bliss