News Round-Up
The need for speed to support veterans
Speed by name and hopefully speed by nature, River Island’s Martin Speed is once again taking to pedal power to support armed service veterans who have fallen on hard times when he climbs back into the saddle to take part in the ‘Pedal to Paris’ challenge this September.
In the year that celebrated the 80th Year of the D-Day Landings, around 80 cyclists will be completing the 460-kilometre (279 mile) road trip to boost the fundraising efforts of the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal.
The RFID Data Insights Manager who specialises in predictive risk modelling is swapping number crunching for muscle building on this intense four-day cycling endurance test (September 5-9th) where he hopes to raise almost £2,000 for the Appeal.
This is the second time Martin has climbed into the saddle for this challenge, but there is a 10-year gap between these two events.
“I know this is madness, but I’ve signed up for the Pedal to Paris event again which I last did 10 years ago when I was much fitter, slimmer, and cycling more often – and even then it was still the most physically challenging thing I’ve ever done. And now I’m a fatter, older, more worn out of version of me doing it all over again!”
Martin’s quest is a personal journey related to relatives who served with honour, one of whom, his Uncle Sam, was a Dunkirk survivor who was also a Desert Rat fighting alongside Field Marshall Montgomery in North Africa.
“He was a volunteer at the beginning of the war – someone who was not frightened of putting himself in harms’ way, like those heroes who were commemorated for their bravery at the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
“It’s in recognition of all the men and women who served in conflicts - all of whom have faced tougher challenges since. Many today are in desperate need of help with PTSD after leaving the forces because they lack the structure they had in the military,” said Martin.
“They are just normal people who had and have a deep sense of duty in the face of danger.
“Right now, the Royal British Legion is helping those who are isolated from family, facing homelessness, struggling to feed their children and in financial crisis - working tirelessly to ensure that those who have served are being looked after no matter what challenges they or their country faces,” said Martin who carried out his pre-race training on the gruelling hills of North Devon.
“It’s hard work as I need to average around 12 mph all day – which is a challenge for someone who has not done it for a while.
“River Island has been very supportive in offering to match fund what I raise for the charity and I’m determined to reach my goad of £1,700.”
Your donations will mean the Royal British Legion can continue to provide the life challenging support that our armed forces community needs and deserves.
If you want to support Martin’s cycle challenge, you can donate by visiting: https://royalbritishlegion.enthuse.com/pf/martin-speed
