Two friends from Hull are taking on a good cause as they look to ride a tandem bike from Humber Bridge to Buckingham Palace and back to raise money for a trio of charities. Originally scheduled to depart on August 22, this date has now been brought forward a day and the riders hope to have the trip wrapped up by August 25.
Kristian Parker, 45, and Andy Blakeston, 57, have been turning heads in the area while training as they gear up for their round trip of about 400 miles on a tandem bike. The idea came from Kristian’s wife who thought it would be an entertaining way for the pair to raise money after walking from the Hull Minster to Edinburgh Castle last year to raise money for five charities.
The pair have provided plenty of entertainment for local residents as they train. They recently fell into a rose bush in front of a couple, who helped the lads up while trying to supress their laughter.
They are hoping to raise money for charities who provide much needed services in the area with the beneficiaries of this event being Mysterious Minds, Oakwood Dog Rescue and Pet Respect.
Event organiser Kristian Parker said: “It would be just great for the public to get behind us. I have previously had good responses to other charity events, if they could share what we are doing or donate that would be brilliant.
“We have had some funny looks riding around the area, tandem bikes are not a common sight on the road so a lot of people do wonder what we are doing.
“We have both cycled before but nothing like this, it is a lot different. Andy will be on the back driving the power and I will handle the steering so hopefully, together we can get it done.”
The two met a few decades ago playing rugby and still play in together in a masters team today. They have selected this year’s charities as they all need help with funds and provide different services for people in a variety of ways.
Mysterious Minds is a local charity in Hull and East Riding that supports families that have lost a loved one to suicide. Mysterious Minds was founded by Chelsey Dalee and Leona Dalee in 2017 after losing Chelsey’s child’s dad and former partner, Jamie Swallow, to suicide. Dawn Stansfield joined the team after losing her daughter Mollie to suicide and wanting to give back to the foundation after they donated towards Mollie’s funeral.
Based in Hull, Oakwood Dog Rescue was founded in 2009 to help overseas street and UK dogs find their forever homes with loving families. They try and find ‘one home only’ for dogs which allows them to settle into their new forever pack. This approach tends to take longer but the charity wants to match their dogs to the best homes so they to ensure the animals stay in the home that have been found.
Pet Respect is a Hull based Animal Charity who promotes responsible pet ownership and offers animal assisted therapy services. The charity engages with as many school children as possible in a mission to spread their message which is, ‘treat others as you would like to be treated yourself’, the golden rule.
If you would like to learn more about the ride and where to make a donation, you can click here.