Exeter School on a mission for charity
Exeter School pupils, parents, staff, friends and alumni are putting their best wheel forward to raise £50,000 for charity.
The team of nineteen riders supported by ten crew, two minibuses, and a van plan will cycle 904.8 miles and 46,678 vertical feet over ten days to raise money for the Children's Society and The Janine Di-Vincenzo Foundation.
Estates and Facilities Manager Craig Stewart has organised the ambitious cycle ride from Land's End to John O'Groats.
"After lengthy conversations with colleagues over lunch in the Exeter School dining hall, I managed to talk myself into taking part in a Lejog charity cycle ride, or better still, organising one myself," said Craig.
"From there it evolved and I started to put feelers out and discovered that a number of school staff, pupils, parents, friends and alumni of Exeter School were also enthusiastic cyclists and very keen to join in.
"Having gained the support of the Headmaster and the Bursar I selected two charities to equally support."
The Children's Society are a national charity who run local projects, helping children and young people when they are at their most vulnerable and have nowhere left to turn.
The Janine Di-Vincenzo Foundation is a recently created foundation started by the Di-Vincenzo family following the loss of Janine through cancer. The foundation aims to provide financial support to families who can't afford advice and help from pioneering specialists. The success of these treatments allows the family to have more time together.
In a bid to ensure as much money goes to charity as possible, Craig had the brainwave of asking schools along the route to provide accommodation for the Exeter School cycling team and crew.
Mount Kelly School, Taunton School, Monmouth School, Ellesmere College, Sedbergh School and Lomond School have all generously agreed to support the worthy cause.
"It is very important to me that as much money as possible goes to the charities and I didn't want external event organisers to be involved and drain the pot unnecessarily," explained Craig.
"This meant that I had to research and plan the route, find accommodation, and provide support to the riders. I struck on the idea that I might get accommodation from other independent schools en route. This has been a huge success as I have now been offered accommodation from seven schools to whom we are very grateful.
"Additional accommodation is being provided by the YHA, The Lockerbie Adventure Centre and the SYHA and the cost of the additional accommodation has very kindly been covered by Marsh Barton Security Services (MBSS)."
The team is made up of Craig and his son Oscar, school staff Joe Lapenna, Matt Saunders, Becci Carter, Ed Jones, Graham Skinner and Sue Marks, alumnae Kate and Amy Marks, parents Marcus Di Vincenzo, Nick Scott and Roger Cole, and friends Nigel Dart, Matt Spohr, Roy O'Shaughnessy, John Bater, Graeme Scott and Tom Webber. They are supported by staff members Lisa Stewart, Karen Dart and Ali Marsh, parent Ian Foster as well as Molly Dart, Lexie, Max and Luca Di Vincenzo.
The intrepid cyclists depart on 8 August covering North Cornwall, Dartmoor, Cheddar Gorge, the Clifton Suspension Bridge, the Wye Valley, Shap and Beattock Summits, the beautiful West of Scotland, Glencoe and the Great Glen on up the east coast of Scotland to John O'Groats, without the aid of ferries, and most importantly will always start and finish at their overnight accommodation.
The target of £50,000 is ambitious and the Lejog cycling team are very grateful for the support they have already received.
"Thanks to Marsh Barton Security Services (MBSS) who have paid for all our accommodation where needed, Sodexo and Greendale who are providing our cycling jerseys," said Craig.
"We are also thankful to System Six Kitchens who have provided us with a van and trailer for the entire journey.
"We would like to thank all our many donors so far for their generosity."
Anyone who wishes to sponsor the team should contact Craig Stewart via CAS@exeterschool.org.uk. All sponsors' names and logos will be displayed on the support van.
Donations can be made via the Virgin Money Giving site or directly to Exeter School:
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fund/LEJOG2016
Updates of the team's fundraising, training and ride progress can be found on their Facebook page, please 'like' and share if you can: www.facebook.com/ExeterSchoolLEJOG2016.
