Two bosses of travel industry advertising agency Designate are leading a four-man charity cycle ride from London to Paris.
Dean Harvey, digital development director, and Adam Hill, chief executive of Designate, which has clients including P&O Ferries and Kuoni and won the Best Use of Social Media award at the Travolution Awards 2012, are being joined by Brighton businessmen Arjo Ghosh and Alistair Reid for the ride. The team plan to chart their progress live on social media.
They are cycling in aid of the Chestnut Tree House children’s hospice in Sussex, where Harvey’s wife works, and have already raised £12,000 for the cause. The hospice acts as a respite centre for children with life-threatening conditions and their families.
Harvey, who has taken part in the London to Brighton bike ride and run the London Marathon to raise funds for the hospice in the past, said: “I was looking for this year’s challenge and wanted to take that extra step.”
Once Harvey posted details of his plans online, the other three participants offered to join him on the ride, which is being sponsored by P&O Ferries and involves cycling more than 75 miles a day over four days.
The riders depart London tomorrow (Weds) and arrive in Paris on Saturday evening. The event is organised by Global Adventure Challenges and has 38 participants in total.
Harvey admitted he was nervous about the challenge. “There is a bit of nervousness but provided there is not too much rain and wind then it’s just about getting your head down and cycling,” he said.
The team will be updating their progress live on Twitter and Facebook with blog posts and video footage. Follow their progress: @ride2paris or via facebook.com/LondonToParis2013.
To donate go to justgiving.com/teams/RidetoParis.