Ellis' 1,000km in August

Hi,

My name is Ellis and I'm aiming to cycle 1,000kms in a month on my handcycle to help charities that support disabled people live life to the fullest, be that through physical therapy, recreational activity or making the stadium at my local community football/soccer club more accessible.

The organisations I've chosen are:

I'd never cycled before the first lockdown in 2020. After a trip to Ireland in which a friend of mine mentioned handcycling in passing, I decided to look it up. When visiting a local wheelchair company in January 2020, I decided to give one a go and I was hooked... Two years and 18,000 kilometres later, I still love it.

But, truth be told, so many of the things I do every day as a disabled person wouldn't be possible if it hadn't been for Wirral charity Stick 'n' Step providing me with free conductive education when I was growing up - and I'm keen to support them to be able to support them to continue doing that into the future.

Wheels For All is a disabled cycing charity running dozens of inclusive cycling sessions every week up and down England and Wales. I'm ashamed to say that although they have a long-running session in my local park I hadn't heard of them until after I started cycling. Their CEO, Ian Tierney, was one of the first people I met on a cycle adventure without my dad and I'd be over the moon to donate a third of this money to support their work.

For me, a big benefit of cycling pretty much everywhere has been getting to reconnect with my local community here in Birkenhead. One of the things I've loved is the freedom of getting to go and watch my local side, Tranmere Rovers, ten minutes from home. And that's why, last but not least, I'd like to donate to the Tranmere Rovers' Disabled Supporters' Association through the Lee Knight Foundation. They've done some amazing work in recent years at Prenton Park. with the plastic dugouts for disabled fans ensuring we don't get soaked through in inclement weather and the lift up to the first floor of the Main Stand widening the seating options for disabled fans.

It's for these three organisations that I'm aiming to cycle 1,000 kms or more this August. If you can donate, that's incredible - thank you very much! If you can't - and times are tough for many people right now -, that's okay. Just give me a hoot or a wave if you see me out and about!