DIGEST

across the country
Across the c
DSG team amongst 27,000 in
cycling challenge
After enjoying last year’s London to Brighton bike ride
and successfully raising over £1000 for the British Heart
Foundation (BHF), a team consisting of 14 riders and
two support drivers from DSG Colchester once again
took part in the challenge.
Despite a heavy night before, the team were raring to tackle the
54 mile journey. They all lined up at the start line at 7.00am and
promptly cycled their way out as a group, fighting through the
traffic and more than 27,000 other cyclists. They remained as a
group for the first 10 miles, thereafter they divided into smaller
groups, meeting up at certain stops along the way.
The rain held off and apart from the wind the ride went well or
at least it did until they faced the first big hill. However, they
tackled the hill and the subsequent three others before reaching
the dreaded Ditchling Beacon, the mile climb ascending 280
metres above sea level. Only three out of the 14 team members
DSG team after the challenge, L-R, Andy Hughes, Mick Champion,
Mark Dean, Angela Staff, Roy Williams, Paul Lawrence, Debbie McQuie,
Chris Osborne, Mark Adkins, Elliott Milgate, Stuart Robertson,
Andy Bennington, Jason Gooding, Aaron Chambers,
Andy Bridges and Phil Puxley (Photographer)
decided to attempt and managed to ride the beacon, an achievement itself. By the time they had reached the peak, their legs were burning.
Fortunately, following the uphill struggle, came the descent, this enabled the cyclists to reach speeds of up to 40 miles an hour, helping them
to build up their average speed.
For all their efforts, the first DSG cyclists crossed the finishing line in approximately fours hours, with the rest of the team following closely
behind. After collecting their medals, they all made their way home to recover and rest their weary legs.
Jason Gooding, Production planner told Digest, “The day was a great success. The whole team completed the ride with no punctures or
issues. It was our aim to beat last year’s fundraising efforts and I am pleased to announce that we have raised double the amount for BHF,
having reached almost £2000 before gift aid contribution. We would like to thank everyone who kindly supported us and donated to the
cause.”
Jason, a keen cyclist also recently completed not only the Essex Castle 75 mile bike ride but also the Essex 100 miles. Despite Essex's
reputation as a flat county, the routes included a number of great inclines making the ride challenging.
Girl on the run
Sarah Timmis, Learning & Development advisor from DSG Donnington recently took part in the
first Race for Life event held at Weston Park in Staffordshire.
Race for Life is the largest women-only fundraising event in the UK. Since 1994, women of all ages and fitness
levels have been coming together at the inspiring event to walk, jog or run to help beat cancer. Some women
take part in celebration of surviving a cancer experience, others take part in memory of a loved one or to give
hope to a cancer-free future.
It was estimated that nearly 5,000 runners took part with most opting to complete the 5 kilometre distance.
Despite not being an avid runner, Sarah was amongst the twenty percent of women who chose to run double
the distance to complete 10km. Sarah’s training preparation paid off, she successfully completed the course in
one hour 13 minutes.
Sarah told Digest, “Anyone who knows me will know that I am more likely to have a glass of wine in my hand
than be working out in the gym. However, I wanted to set myself a goal to work towards and doing a race for
charity was a good incentive. I chose Race for Life as cancer research is a charity close to a lot of people’s
hearts, most people know someone who’s been affected by cancer. I would like to thank everyone for
supporting me and helping me raise £391.”
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DIGEST October/November 2011 www.dsg.mod.uk