At the time of writing this piece, we have endured two days of torrential rain, horrific climbing and cold temperatures. All this in the desert state of Arizona !!

That said, we are about to commence day 12 of this most challenging ride. The team, now extremely tired after 11 solid days riding, are pulling together and fighting their way through it.

Hopefully, the weather would have turned by the time we roll into Santa Monica and the end of our journey.

Hope66 has been, in so many ways, a terrific effort by each and every team member. The time, money, commitment and of course the astonishing fund raising of everyone involved has eclipsed anything we have ever done and we hope to surpass our £125,000 target.

To hear team members describe their efforts as life changing is reward in itself for me personally.
We have witnessed things that would have otherwise passed by and I am pleased to have influenced that.

Other than being happy never to see a Holiday Inn again, on a personal level the event has definitely taught me a few more harsh life lessons. I trust it has for others too.

To write this post without paying homage to our magnificent and selfless support team, would be a crime. The route planning of Iain McInnes, the sterling I. T. Skills of Alan Sadler, general support, driving, and all out help from Mathew Glover, Paul Godwin, Alan Rothwell (is he rider or is he support, who knows) Dave Broxton (our very own veteran support guy) and last but most certainly not least, Mike Derham, who not only supported the ride, but of course is also our proud headline sponsor. all have contributed wonderfully to make the trip such a huge success.

So, just three days to ride, a little over 160 miles for each rider. Lets hope the sun makes an appearance.

Thank you to each and every member and of course to you, our generous sponsors who help us support the incredible Hope House Children’s Hospices. As always, I am overwhelmed.

Gary