BUT WHY??

I'm cycling from London to Paris this summer, as part of an organised charity event. I'll be riding alongside about 80 other people (none of whom I've ever met) and it should take us about four days to reach the Eiffel Tower. Yes, I know, I am sure this all sounds like a bit of a jolly. I bet you're already picturing baguettes sticking out of the basket on the front of my bicycle, and floral-skirted jaunts through vineyards in the Loire.

Well stop it.
First of all, my bike doesn't have a basket. (And we're not going anywhere near the bloody Loire.) Also, my attire is going to consist mainly of terribly UN-sexy padded lycra shorts... at the end of the day I am willing to forgo any sense of style just as long as there is sufficient padding on my derriere.

(I would like to take a moment to thank the French for derriere, which is so much more sophisticated than "bum" or "arse".)

Anyway, it will be a grand adventure, one I'm really looking forward to - but then I can say that because I'm currently sitting on the sofa. The first day of this ride will be 95 miles of saddle-suffering undulations (that's cycle-speak for HILLS THAT WILL HURT MY DERRIERE), and if I make it through that, I will have three more to follow.

The challenge and the excitement will be worthwhile alone, but in truth, that's not solely what drives me. Earlier this year New Zealand - yep, my homeland - was hit by a massive earthquake, and having seen the good work that aid relief charities such as the Red Cross have done, I wanted to give something back. There are many crisis-hit countries right now, and funds for resources are so valuable. Specifically I'm raising money for the British Red Cross, and to date I've collected £1100. Over half of this has been donated by the incredible people who follow me on Twitter, and the other half by those fabulous people who know me outside the interweb. To everyone who has sponsored me and offered support, I want to say THANK YOU. I guess this blog is my way of offering something in return. It will follow my training progress, cycling learning curves and then the event itself.

If you would like to sponsor me (but of COURSE you would!) CLICK HERE and follow the simple steps. It should go without saying that I wouldn’t put my dignity or my derriere through this if I didn’t think it was worth it.

x Claire