My cycling jersey and fundraising kit from Prostate Cancer UK arrived in the post the other day, which means I’m definitely signed up and registered for RideLondon!  Choosing to ride for a charity was a no-brainer – the only choice left was which charity to choose …

There’s a slight health warning that comes with this post – it’s pretty serious and not particularly humorous.  But it’s well worth reading.

Choosing a charity

The RideLondon is the cycling equivalent of the London Marathon, and there are plenty of charities out there who are willing to offer you a guaranteed place in exchange for a minimum fundraising target.  The event website contains loads of information about the many charities that they partner with, so it was a case of getting a shortlist together and then working my way through their application forms and working out whether their fundraising targets were something I could achieve.

One thing was for certain – I knew I wanted to do something for a cancer charity.  It’s sad that despite so much progress in the field of cancer research, there are still tons of people being diagnosed every day.  As a kid I remember thinking that cancer was quite rare, but as I’ve grown up I’ve learnt that cancer is pretty much everywhere you look.  I don’t know anyone who hasn’t had some form of contact with it at some point of their life – whether that be through a family member or a friend.  Both sides of my family have had to contend with it in some form or other, and I’m not foolish enough to assume that there won’t be more of my friends and family who have to battle it in the future.

Men United

All of the cancer charities do amazing work and as a result of their commitment the chances of survival are significantly higher than they used to be.  But they reply on fundraising to help make a real difference.  After hours and hours of reading I eventually came to the conclusion that I wanted to do something much closer to my own heart.  It was time to join Men United.  In the UK, about 1 in 8 men will get prostate cancer at some point in their lives, and they are predicting that there are just 10 years to tame it before it gets out of control.  Apparently a man dies from prostate cancer every hour, and this is set to soar over the next 10 years – becoming the most common form of cancer in the UK.  Shocking really.  I could go on but it’s all summarised quite nicely here on their website.

So – I’ve chosen my charity, I have my cycling jersey (it’s got a really great design) and now all I have to do is train and ride 100 miles at the end of July.  All that remains is your sponsorship.

You can donate at JustGiving by going to www.justgiving.com/ChrisoftheHays or by clicking the image below – plus don’t forget to subscribe to the blog to hear about how my training is going!

You can also leave a comment below with some encouraging words if you like – it’s up to you – but whatever you do or however you choose to do it, it will be appreciated.