Shropshire man takes on gruelling 315km bike ride challenge in Sweden for children's hospice charity
A 60-year-old Shropshire cyclist has taken on an epic biking challenge in Sweden to raise money for Hope House children’s hospice.
David Robinson, from Ellesmere, took on the Vätternrundan - a 315-kilometre (196-mile) ride around the Swedish lake Vättern – taking 17 hours to complete.
Vätternrundan is known as the world's largest recreational bike ride. Every year close to 23,000 participants gather in Motala to ride along the coast amidst the beautiful Swedish scenery.
“It’s tough, there are times where you really have to grind it out," said David.
David is the founder of Shropshire business Marley Risk Consultants, which has been a generous supporter of Hope House for a number of years, raising thousands of pounds.
This latest challenge by David has so far raised more than £6,000.
“My first employee at Marley Risk Consultants was Ben, and his daughter Freya receives incredible care at Hope House,” said David.
“It’s a cause close to all of our hearts and that’s why we continue to raise money.”
Hope House fundraiser Cat Dowdeswell said: “It costs £10 million a year to run the services at our hospices, with no charge ever made to families for accessing our services.
“We can only be here for the children and families that need us the most thanks to the wonderful supporters like David and Marley Risk Consultants who support us through amazing fundraising.
“Without the support of people like David we wouldn’t be here for the families who need us.”
You can still sponsor David by visiting justgiving.com/page/david-robinson-4 or, if you've been inspired, you can sign up for the Hope House Cycle100 challenge this August at hopehouse.org.uk/cycle100.
