Cycling for a Cause

Riders cycle 250 km over two days for the Lift Industry Charity.

This time last year, when it was fairly clear we were in for a tough winter of COVID-19 restrictions, Reiss Stygal from A&A Electrical came to me and said he wanted to do something for the industry. He wasn’t sure exactly what, but it needed to be some sort of challenge that would engage the people taking part while raising money for the Lift Industry Charity.

We tossed around a few ideas, but then focused in on a charity cycle ride. Actually, more than just a ride — more of a challenge — something that people would need to train for through the winter if they were to complete it.

The plan was to ride 250 km, with a start line at International Lift Equipment’s (ILE) factory in Leicester back to the finish line at Dewhurst’s factory in Feltham, West London. We would split the ride into two days: the first day being the most challenging, with 160 km of cycling from the start down to Wallingford, a scenic small town on the banks of the Thames in Oxfordshire. Day two would be easier, at just 90 km back to Dewhurst’s facility in West London.

The challenge really did grab people’s attention. We were able to get support from five key sponsors, to whom we are extremely grateful. These were ILE, Dewhurst, A&A Electrical, Digital Advanced Control and Thames Valley Controls.

A “Just Giving” page was set up and, slowly, the sponsorship money for the Lift Industry Charity started to roll in. The charity is a great cause, as it supports the families of lift industry personnel who are injured or, sadly, killed whilst working in the industry.

As the day approached, the Just Giving page hotted up with some very generous support from the independent lift sector. The top fundraisers were Apex Lifts, closely followed by Orton Lifts and Team DAC. A big “thank you” to them for their generosity. In terms of single individuals raising money, James Halford from Jackson’s led the way, followed by Gavin O’Driscoll and Lee Dean. In the end, a staggering £55,000 was raised for the charity by the event.

Seventy cyclists gathered at ILE’s factory at Leicester and set off for Wallingford. The weather was perfect, and the route was through some beautiful English countryside, although the rolling hills did make it tough-going for some of the cyclists who had not spotted the word “challenge” in the title of the event. Team Pickerings, on their tandem, kept everyone motivated with a good beat from the speakers attached to their bike!

The first riders (Peter Dewhurst and Julian Lloyd) made it to Wallingford soon after 2 p.m. It was to be a while before our final two riders made it to the campsite at 8:30 p.m., but there was no way that Gavin O’Driscoll and Stavri Miner were going to give up!

The overnight stop gave everyone a chance to relax and recover. There was an excellent band that kept us entertained and a very tasty barbecue. The bar was propped up well into the night, with Reiss closing out proceedings at 2 a.m. with a slightly drunken thank you speech!

The next day was effectively a morning cycle along the course of the Thames with a lunchtime barbecue at Dewhurst. With the England soccer team having made it to the final of the Euro’s that was due to be played that evening, everyone departed in high spirits.

The event would not have been able to take place without the support of a number of people. Reiss, who drove the idea and made it happen; Gary Poynter and Oli Roworth, who spent a full day with Reiss marking out the route for the cyclists; and John Bailey at A&A and James Edge from TLS, who made the event work. John enlisted the help of his senior management team at A&A, who provided invaluable support throughout the weekend transporting bags, tents, exhausted cyclists, etc. All the cyclists were extremely grateful for all the support given.

What better way to spend a weekend? Great cycling through beautiful English countryside, with friends and colleagues and £55,000 raised for the Lift Industry Charity.