April 2013
1 post
Twelve months...
Ever since that day, the day that changed everything, I have been chanting to myself “just get to a year, just get to a year” like a train that stops at no stations. It was a focal point, as if twelve months down the line some magical solution would appear and make the 365 days of pain previous to it just simply disappear…
Of course this was not to be, here I am at the...
September 2012
1 post
The final hurdle...
So, as you may have noticed, it has taken me a while to get round to writing about the last day. Two months in fact! This has mainly been because I don’t want to put The Kaiser Challenge to bed by writing about that amazing last day. However, over the last few weeks I have come to notice that a simple blogpost won’t ever spell the end as there are still many other bits and pieces going...
July 2012
7 posts
“You will lose someone you can’t live without,and your heart will be badly...”
– Anne Lamott
I never thought I would look forward to dancing with a limp.
Rain, rain, go away...
I never thought I would be saying I was thankful for 78 hilly miles of tough cycling, but I think that it was only the pure elation of having finished the first day that encouraged the majority to rise from their luxurious bunk beds the next morning once they had glanced out the window.
It was freely acknowledged that we had been ridiculously lucky with the weather on day one, there were even...
The tortoise and the hare...
Today is my first official lazy day since Alex passed away - I am yet to get out of my pajamas, have watched trash TV most of the day and am dining out on cereal as my main meal of choice. Fear not, I am not regressing, just recuperating…
If arranging The Kaiser Challenge wasn’t enough to push me to exhaustion, cycling the 200 miles got me pretty close and then it was the final...
Ready for the off...
And we are here! After a stressful few hours in which our luxury coach with toilet and trailer had turned into two minibuses and an old transit van we have finally made it.
Sunny Glossop has let not one but two buses of Southerners in its doors without us even showing our passports…So far the observations through the windows of the vehicles have been along the lines of ‘oh sh*t how...
“A difficult time can be more readily endured if we retain the conviction that...”
– John Maxwell
A landing full of camping gear; a stairwell packed with bikes; a kitchen covered in charity vests, energy bars and megaphones and cyclist crib cards still being laminated and cut up - Team Pegasus HQ remains to be a busy hub in preparation for the journey up to la North...
Hint..Hint...
Not enough time for many words as the to-do list is still long and we are now on proper countdown for the off… The action list for the Celebration of Life evening has been dished out to the Team Pegasus Goundforce Team. Seeing as this team is made up of my mum and all those who are currently (conveniently) pregnant and not able to ride, I hope that the stress isn’t too much as,...
June 2012
10 posts
Fight another day...
Each day is hard and the moments seem so long
But blink for a moment and they have just gone.
Pain so real, incomprehensible to bear
Searching your world to see if they are there.
Tears come and go, as does a smile
You wish for the anxiety to leave, just for a while.
You heart still remains to beat
Even when you wish to admit defeat.
A roller coaster ride you didn’t pay to go on
...
Full steam ahead...
Things are picking up pace now, training rides are taking place as the reality of the challenge dawns upon our lovely cyclists who have signed up; unnecessary amounts of lycra are being purchased and carb-loading has begun. Okay, maybe the last point is happening a little too early but you can never have too much energy right?!
Discussions regarding inner tubes, ‘to clip in or not to clip...
Turning words into action..
In an hour it will have been four weeks since I, along with his family and friends, laid my most darling boy to rest. It was a day filled with utter devastation, but one that was also beautiful and helped us to begin to honour all that Kaiser was and what he represented.
As I stood up in the church, on that day, in front of all those who Alex had touched in his short life, I was nervous. Not...
“And the voices in the waves are always whispering to Florence, in their...”
– Charles Dickens
A sea inspired quote thanks to my beautiful Mother who has whisked me away to the coast in order to let me shout into the seas and be reminded that, amongst all this madness and upset, love is eternal and Kaiser is by my side and forever in my heart.
Keep up the fantastic work in...
I don't like hills...
Surprisingly enough, I am talking about going down the things, and while we are talking about cycling - I am yet to master corners. Obviously it is the road bikes fault and not mine, I mean, I am used to a big chunky metal mountain bike that has a seat like an arm chair and with tyres so thick that wouldn’t fall over even if it was stood on its own, with a bunch of midgets pushing it and a...
We are all Team Pegasus...
The days are moving on and the momentum isn’t dropping - another fantastic day for sponsorship yesterday with £2,000 raised plus confirmed support from Eat Natural bars for our riders, a third support van kindly donated by Renault and a week long break in a rather lovely hotel in Salcombe added to the raffle treasure chest.
Spin off activities are happening all over the place in order to...
May 2012
24 posts
Happy Birthday
I am, for once, stuck for words.
My boy, beautiful boy, would have been 29 today. At this point in the morning, he would have already torn open his presents (all bike related of course); eaten an exceptional amount of bacon for just one man; tried to get out of going to work and then bounced alongside me as we waved each other off at my building…
He would have already been to Costco and...
A steep learning curve..
Having never cycled a long distance nor arranged a charity event before, each day is presenting me with learning opportunities…So good, some bad…Today I have learnt;
- Not to say ‘umm’ a lot in a radio interview, it makes you sound a little stupid;
- If you don’t ask, you don’t get. Thanks to Carys for the Buxton water recommendation, a simple conversation and...
I don't like Mondays...
…well actually, that is a big fat lie - for this Monday anyhow. Why? Well, I can’t even put the words together in the right way to convey my complete admiration and appreciation for the support we have received on this, our 6th day live, and so just see the facts below to realize how amazing you ALL are;
- 92 donations received since midnight.
- £3780 in sponsorship ( that is £4536...
Beautiful words from a beautiful blog -... →
Frankie Sandfords call out for support is heard... →
More support, this time from BBC Bristol - click... →
This is when...
Kaiser was a big believer in people, he strived to see the good in those around him; would see the positive before the negative and tried to add value to others lives with kindness and generosity.
Today, everyone who has sponsored/tweeted/liked/shared/visited has followed in his steps - including Frankie from the Saturdays. We have had yet another fantastic day of fundraising with over 70...
mrspandp.com help spread the word... →
BIG thanks to Alison from Plans and Presents at mrspandp.com for dedicating her blog to the Kaiser Challenge…keep your eye also on lovemydress.net who are kindly doing the same for us tomorrow!
Keep casting that net far and wide, as just one man Alex gave so much in his short lifetime and by all of us working so hard to achieve this goal together we are managing to give a little back..
Our first media coverage....Bristol24-7 →
Keep it coming...
…Just over 36 hours in and we are nearly a quarter of the way to our target AND have 38 crazy cyclists confirmed - now just to work out who will accommodate such a rabble for a night in both Telford and Gloucester…anyone a hotelier per chance?!…
What we are achieving here is something we can all be proud to be a part of so, in the words of Benjamin Franklin; ”Never leave...
What a difference a day makes...
…In the last three and a half weeks, this saying has been said with shock and sadness as the reality of losing my lovely boy in such a way, with no warning, rattled around in my head and heart. Tears fell as I exhaled “…what a difference a day makes…” whilst trying, and failing, to comprehend what had happened.
But today, this sentence can be said in a way that...
Ready, set, GO!
And we are LIVE! Thank you so much to Derek Troy-West who has been a saint and a miracle worker to put up with my pestering and nit-picking aswell as getting the site designed, built and live in just one week (whilst holding down a full time job)!
Now on to the fun stuff - spread the word, share the link and if anyone wants to support The Kaiser Cardiomyopathy Challenge in the form of...
Ignorance is bliss...
Alex would be laughing at me right now. He would be slapping his thigh and letting out his famous loud belly laugh whilst watching me attempt to post my first ever blog about a 200 mile cycle ride that I plan to embark upon. Why? Because these are things that he would do, whilst I watched from the comfort of my sofa…
He was my cycling fanatic, tech support fiancé who, I hope, has taught me...
“History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered...”
– B.C. Forbes
WatchI will bring Kaiser’s headcam along for the ride…although I fear it will run like a Carry On film rather than to the standard that Alex had reached, as shown here.
“Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality.”
– Emily Dickinson
