A trio of Inverness businessmen have raised £2,000 for a national children’s cancer charity after tackling one of the Tour de France’s notoriously difficult mountain stages.
Colin MacLeod, customer training officer at Highland Office Equipment in the city’s Harbour Road, was joined by Chris Barnett, owner of Roy Homes Ltd, and David MacDonald, director at Global Infrastructure, for the gruelling Apline cycle challenge.
Despite having to stop 38 miles short of the finish line due to the road being closed due to a car crash, they have raised £2,000 with the money set to benefit national charity Children with Cancer.
The event originally required the Auld Alliance group, along with an expected 15,000 amateur cyclists, to cover 85.7miles while climbing an altitude of 16,500 ft.
Tour de France professionals cycled the same route just a few days later – the 19th stage of the competition – between Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne and the La Toussuire-Les Sybelles resort town in the French Alps.
The route includes huge climbs at the Chaussy, the Croix de Fer, by Glandon, and the Mollard Passes, and the final climb towards La Toussuire-Les Sybelles.
Mr MacLeod, 41, said: “As expected, the challenge proved not to be one for the faint-hearted given the heat and the altitude. Our training went well but unfortunately the race was forced to stop due to an earlier crash before we could cross the finishing line. We had to stop about 2.5miles from the top of the Glandon.
“It still proved to be an incredible experience for all of us, particularly given the huge number of other cyclists taking part from all over the world, and I’d thoroughly recommend the event to any other sports enthusiasts. We’re now turning attention towards our next fundraising challenge.
“We’re thrilled with the level of support we’ve received from friends, family and colleagues, all of which will hopefully make a big difference to Children with Cancer.”
In 2014, the trio were part of a larger Auld Alliance group which raised more than £30,000 on behalf of the Special Care Baby Unit at Raigmore Hospital, Highland Hospice and Prostate Cancer UK following a 10-day cycle challenge which covered 1,000 miles.
The Auld Alliance team is still accepting donations at its Virgin Money Giving page
http://bit.ly/1HoUadL
with proceeds going to charity.