A team from Ski Solutions is preparing to cycle 600 miles from London to Val d’Isère in a fundraiser that will see them climb higher than Everest.
The week-long challenge, in aid of the Snow Sports Foundation (SSF), is set to begin on Friday, August 23, with the finish scheduled for Thursday, August 29.
Ski Solutions managing director Ian McIlrath said: “I cycle to work regularly, but this trip is a whole new level of challenge. I’m excited but a little petrified at the same time.”
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The group also consists of head of client services Murray Dee, cycling operations manager James Warburg and senior account manager Ewan Ramsay.
Setting off from the company’s London office in Brixton, they will head to Newhaven for the ferry to Dieppe, before skirting north-east of Paris and heading south-east towards the Swiss border and Lake Annecy.
They will then pick up the Route des Grandes Alpes, riding from the Beaufortain range into the Tarentaise Valley.
On the final day, the team will climb to the 1,968m-high Cormet de Roselend, before descending into Bourg-Saint-Maurice and climbing up past Tignes Lake to Val d’Isère.
Over the course of the week, they will climb a total of more than 9,000m – slightly higher than Everest, which stands at 8,849m tall.
The cyclists have already raised more than £2,000 for the SSF, whose mission is to use inclusive snow sports coaching to provide life-changing experiences and employability to those with additional needs, mental health challenges, disabilities and financial hardship.
Mcllrath said: “We are honoured to be supporting the SSF’s mission to make skiing accessible to all, and we are ready to tackle this ride.
“As official partners, I am happy to announce that we will also donate £1 per passenger to SSF for every tailor-made ski holiday booked with us this season.”
SSF founder Richard Fetherston said: “We are so grateful for the funding we receive as it not only benefits the funded individuals in the development of their own life skills, but also enhances their family, school and social environments.”
Donations can be made through the cyclists’ JustGiving page.
Pictured (from left): James Warburg, Ewan Ramsay, Murray Dee and Ian McIlrath