London To Paris Event Report

The first CARE London to Paris Cycle Challenge took place on 17th-19th July 2008. The event saw 23 ambitious cyclists take on the 230-mile trip in three days, arriving at France's L'Arc de Triomphe in Paris amid glorious sunshine on Saturday. All participants completed the challenge, a huge personal achievement alongside the fantastic collective achievement of raising over £30,000 to support CARE International’s work in helping 55 million people in nearly 70 countries find a route out of poverty.

Day One saw all cyclists congregate in Kingston, fired up, full of high-energy treats and ready to start the challenge. With 70 miles ahead of them on the first day, cyclists sped off to the shouts and cheers of supporters. The British Summer wasn't too unkind, providing sunny intervals amid the otherwise fairly grey cloud, punctuated of course by the occasional shower!  It wasn’t long before teams gained their nicknames, ‘Team Fun’, ‘Team Go!’ and the aptly named and unfortunate ‘Team Puncture’! After a day of cycling through the quaintest English countryside, including lunch in Haslemere and a stop for tea in Uppark National Trust House, participants all stopped for a well earned night’s sleep in Portsmouth before a 5am start the following day.

In the morning cyclists took the ferry to Caen in northern France setting off on Day Two of the challenge at lunchtime. With 60 more miles ahead of them after a tough first day, morale remained extraordinarily high, reaching peaks of euphoria at the top of each upward stretch. The attitude of French drivers was also a welcome change and surprise for participants who had not cycled in the country before with space and respect being generously given. One participant described the event's highlights as being "every time we stopped for a tea break! The breaks were very well timed so we got a rest at the top of the biggest uphill slogs, which was really helpful." The countryside flattened out and everyone enjoyed the tour through the tranquil countryside of Northern France.

Day Three was the longest day of all. After spending the night in Bernay, cyclists made an early start to cover the 100 miles remaining before their arrival in Paris. It was an exhausted but extremely excited team who rested 20 miles outside of Paris until all participants were gathered together, to complete the remaining stretch as a triumphant group. It was a momentous moment when all participants arrived in central Paris and after celebrations and photographs they circled the very apt landmark, the L'Arc de Triomphe, to mark their arrival in the City. Champagne flowed and long-awaited celebrations took place in the gorgeous late afternoon sun.

Said CARE's Steven Lindsay, who completed the challenge as part of the group, "This was the first time CARE has run a London to Paris cycle challenge, and it was absolutely fantastic. Memorable both in terms of views encountered along the way, and as an experience in general. It was a great opportunity to meet new people and make new friends, and it was a fantastic achievement for all involved. The event will raise over £30,000 which is enormously important to CARE International UK and we're extremely grateful for all who took part."