Le Loop - Brendan supporting the William Wates Memorial Trust
Why £3592. That's the number of kilometres I'll cycle on Le Loop.
Le Loop follows the official route of the Tour de France, a week ahead of the professionals and finishes 21 stages later in Nice (due to the Olympics in Paris).
On Friday 21st June 2024 around 100 riders will gather in Florence for the 'Grand Depart'. Some cycle a few days, some ride all the way. More will join us over the following 3 weeks of the tour.
Riders tackle one of a variety of "Loops": anything from 2 - 21 stages of the Tour de France route. Every participant raises money for the William Wates Memorial Trust (WWMT). The money raised is entirely separate from the participation fee - I pay for all my food, hotels, travel, etc.
All monies raised go directly to WWMT whose mission is to help disadvantaged young people keep away from a life of street crime and violence and fulfil their potential. This is achieved by giving grants to charities that engage young people via sports, arts or education.
It's been a tough couple of years for charities and particularly for young people. This is my chance to give something back to help support young people who aren't lucky enough to enjoy the advantages in life that most of us take for granted.
Le Loop is no small undertaking. Riding even 1 stage of the Tour de France route is a big deal, so please reward my effort by giving generously.
Merci!
My Updates
They say a picture is worth a thousand words
Sunday 11th Aug As well as the summary email I will send to all my sponsors, I've uploaded a series of photos below, each with a sentence or two, which I hope give you a feel for the highs and lows and practical logistics of what it was like to do Le Loop. I hope you enjoy them. Share
Made it!
Wednesday 17th Jul I can't quite believe that, after 21 stages, 3592km, only 2 punctures, and a few scrapes from a crash on stage 2, I've done it! Fatigue really set in on about stage 17, and I think it was only access to daily post-ride massage/physio that kept me functioning. Long days, often in very cold/wet or very hot conditions, I expected but not the sleep deprivation, early morning/late coach transfers, that accompanied them. I slept an average of only 5hrs a night for 23 nights in a row. Unlike the professionals, 'rest days' were anything but! A rush of bike maintenance/cleaning, food/pharmacy shopping, searching for bike shops and laundromats in unfamiliar cities. It's hard to explain but the physical demands on the road were easier than the mental pressure to get a hundred jobs done (impossible) in the few hours you're not on the bike. The camaraderie of the other riders and the logistic support of the Le Loop staff, bike mechanics and physios was crucial. There were days when I helped other riders struggle to the end, and days when I needed that help myself. So pleased I exceeded my mandatory fundraising by ~30%, for such a good cause. Thank you to each and every one of my sponsors. Would I ever do it again? Give me time to think about that one!! Share
It's Not About the Bike. But ...
Sunday 16th Jun
Aiming higher!
Friday 14th Jun My fantastic supporters have taken me to within touch of my compulsory target of £3k to fund their life-changing work done by WWMT for young people in disadvantaged circumstances. So I've chosen to voluntarily raise it to £3592. But why such a specific number? Because that's the number of km I will ride on Le Loop. It will make me think of my sponsors every time I see another km ticked off during the ride. Share
And so the taper begins
Tuesday 4th Jun After 8428 km and 313 hours of training, finally, I begin to wind down ahead of the big event. It's been tough sticking to the training programme but I think I've done as well as I could. I'll still be out regularly but the times and distances now decrease dramatically, to allow my body to recover and adapt so that I start Le Loop in the best possible condition. So now it's just final bike preparation and refining my packing lists. I'm excited but still a bit apprehensive. Thanks to everyone who has supported me so far. I'm very close to my fundraising target now, which will fund important work with young people who would otherwise not get the support to reach their potential.. Share
Fred Whitton Challenge 2024
Monday 13th May
Girona
Monday 22nd Apr
Two significant landmarks in the past week
Saturday 13th Apr
Riding a long way, slowly
Monday 1st Apr Cycling lore says that the only thing cycling long distances slowly, helps you get better at is .... (spoiler alert) cycling long distances slowly! This is sniffed at by "serious" cyclists but they miss the point. It's how you need to prepare for an event like Le Loop. I use hear t rate monitoring to monitor my progress, and I've noticed that my average heart rate is going down progressively. Smart devices can tell you how much recovery time you need before your next ride, and this is also dropping progressively. After a really big ride, it's now 12-19 hrs whereas previously it would often be in excess of 24 hrs. Both of these are signs that my metabolism is adapting to the huge demands I'm putting on it. Let's hope that trend continues as I'm still not at the stage where I could do it day after day after day. Share
First ever back-to-back century rides
Tuesday 19th Mar A "century ride" is where you ride 100 miles in a single ride. I've done this quite a few times but never on consecutive days. Normally, I'd have several days rest after such a big ride but Le Loop doesn't 'do' rest! So the training programme we've been given gradually builds you up to ride long distances day after day. It wasn't as bad as I expected but I was tired the next day, so still some way to go before I'm ready to tackle Le Loop in June. Share
Building up nicely
Tuesday 12th Mar Just done my first century ride (100 miles) as part of my training. I've done a few before but not for a while. I'll slowly increase the number of 100 mile rides as June approaches. On Le Loop, this will be the average daily distance!! Share
A Star is Born
Sunday 3rd Mar
Turbo. A plus or a minus?
Tuesday 13th Feb When I first got serious about road cycling, I said I would never get a turbo. Why sit in your garage when you could be outside? Then I broke my thumb and had to choose: a turbo or lose all the fitness I had. What l learned was that it's not either/or. A turbo is a tool which helps you improve fitness and therefore enjoy your road cycling more. The other big advantage is that, when real life intervenes and you can't spend hours outside, a relatively short turbo session can deliver good training in a much shorter, concentrated form. It's not a substitute for long rides but it's invaluable if events or lack of time mean you would otherwise do no cycling on a day your training programme says you should do a ride. Share
Steady progress
Friday 2nd Feb The frosty weather a couple of weeks back kept me indoors but I made the most of my turbo. Getting back out on the roads now. Next challenge is to start doing back to back rides, i.e. no rest day in between. Share
Now the hard work begins!
Tuesday 16th Jan Had my first long, cold ride that I would definitely not have done if I wasn't looking ahead to June with a large amount of apprehension. 5hrs, 50 miles, average temp 1 degree C, sleety rain on way home.
New Year's Day
Monday 1st Jan Starting as I mean to go on (?). Out on my bike on the first day of 2024. Familiar territory on the challenging slopes of Hope Mountain. I suspect I'll be back often. Share
It's Christmas!
Wednesday 20th Dec Cramming in as many mince pies as possible before the training has to start in the New Year. They say that you need 5000-8000 calories a day on a Tour de France stage. I think I'll start by training to eat that much! ShareThank you to my Sponsors
£750
Jon Craton
£200
Tim Harrington
Good luck and enjoy! Tim and Sue
£120
Brendan Harrington
From Mum & Dad. Good luck!
£113
Julia Munn
Absolutely amazing effort and such a good cause, Well done Bren!!
£108
Conor Corr
Amazing effort
£108
Graham And Ceri
Amazing what your doing and in such challenging weather. Hoping ideal conditions for the Queen stage.
£108
Dave Allen & Siobhán Griffin
£108
Kevin Harrington
Brendan - When we do the Traws Eryri ride together, which will be less than a month before you do Le Loop, can I have a head start? - Kevin
£108
Diana & Ian
An amazing challenge Brendan! Allez Allez!
£105
Terence Harrington
A fiver for every stage!!
£100
Liz Roche
Amazing 👏
£100
Peter Hughes
£100
Pip Mills
Hope the training is going well despite the terrible weather! GOOD LUCK!!!!
£100
Raminder Singh
All the best with the training Brendan! 😀
£100
Howard Williams
Nice one Brendan, massive challenge! Looking forward to hearing how the training is going and of course the big one itself - Good Luck!
£100
Cathey Harrington
Good luck Bren! Enjoy it as well as enduring it! Looking forward to seeing you at the end. All my love Cathey xx
£100
Andrew Orr
... in awe of this commitment, and the excellent cause.
£100
Eckart Schwarz
Best wishes for 2024, and for 'Le Loop'. Great cause. Enjoy !
£85
Hugh & Frances Dolan
£54
Andrew Orr
£54
Praveen Jauhari
A very noble cause Brendan. Best wishes!
£54
Julius And Ruth Xx
Well done Brendan - target hit!!!!
£54
Jude Cope
Bonne chance Brendan!
£54
Paul Harrington
£50
Rob Ann
Bonne chance. I’m sure it will be a great experience. What time will the highlights be on ITV4?
£50
Gerald Sweeney
£50
Lesley Sweeney
£50
Amy Mccartney
Congratulations! A brilliant achievement.
£50
Ben Harrington
£32.40
Amy Mccartney
Good luck and enjoy! A great cause.
£32.40
Anne Hall
Think you must have completed this by now. But well done 👏🏼. Chris & Anne Hall
£30
Helen Welch
Hi Brendan. I'm a friend of your brother Kevin, who told me about your fundraising challenge. It sounds amazing! I am spurned on also to donate a little to your really worthwhile cause....as I am currently in Nice on a short break! There are information boards everywhere with the countdown to The Tour d France 🇫🇷 2024 finishing here. The city are clearly excited about it! It's been an education for me. I wish the Le Loop challenge and you all the very best. Sounds superb!
£30
Heather Swainston
Good Luck Brendan! Best wishes Heather. Colum and Rachel x
£30
Sheila Valentine
Good luck!
£30
Sue Allen
Sooner you than me Brendan!! Good luck -- it's a good cause.
£27
Gasman
Good luck Brendan!
£27
Robert Owen
Good luck Brendan on your epic adventure. Hope you enjoy it too🙂
£27
Claire Phillipson
Sending you our best wishes. We are so impressed. Stay safe and take it all in….🚴🏼♂️🥇
£27
Anonymous
This is a huge challenge for a great charity. It will be very tough and I hope you can enjoy it. All the very best and do look after yourself!
£27
Lynne Bell
Well done Brendan !
£27
Steve Bell
£27
Barry & Mandy
Good luck Brendan! This will require a monumental effort but if anyone can it’s you 👍
£25
Bridget
Good Luck!
£25
Bernard & Hazel Rugg
Well done Brendon, fantastic achievement and an excellent cause.
£25
Paul Crocker
Good luck Brendan! Hope the training has gone well.
£25
Fiona Prichard
Good luck Brendan! It looks quite a challenge but we are sure you will make it!
£25
Rory Callan
Have a great ride Brendan. No wild camping on this one.
£25
Chris Harrington
Happy Christmas!
£25
Kate Rayner
Wishing you all the very best on your enormous adventure, can't wait to hear all about it!
£24
Sheila Sweeney
£20
Ian Shotton And Helen Clayfield
What an awesome challenge Brendan. Best of luck and hope you enjoy it! Ian and Helen
£15
Alex Mitchell
£10.80
Debra Piper
Good luck Brendan on your epic trip! Best wishes, Debra P
£10.80
Kevin Harrington
Brendan Vivian, who you won't know, but is someone I know from my dance class, gave me £10 to sponsor you, as she was so impressed by your efforts and the cause you are supporting. Kevin
£10
Anonymous
£10
Andy Ashford
All the very best Brendan - what a great challenge and worthy cause!
£10
