Riding for Light Relief

19 April 2011

UK - Claire House (Cooper Controls), Philip Norfolk (MA Lighting) & Simon Allan (Martin Professional) have joined forces to participate in 'Hell Rider' this June to raise money for Light Relief.

Light Relief is a charity established by and for the entertainment lighting industry, to help in times of extreme hardship. Formed specifically to help theatre lighting designers and those working in the field who are not in regular full time employment, Light Relief can provide either practical support or financial help, depending on the individual need.

The Hell Rider course comprises separate run (5km) and bike (8km) loops and the team has eight hours in which to complete as many laps as possible. Over the eight hours Claire, Philip and Simon will each be completing over 30km of hilly, off road terrain in this tough challenge.

Whilst the team members are keen runners and bikers and have competed events in the past (Claire and Philip were part of Team PSA who ran the Bath Half Marathon in 2010) this challenge will really test their mental and physical limits.

"Our fundraising page is jovially entitled "Claire, Philip and Simon do something silly for Light Relief", but with 'Hell' in the event title I'm now thinking we should have said we are doing something tortuous!" says Claire. "We all love a challenge, but Hell Rider will require pacing, endurance and tactical skills to ensure we get as far as we can. It's certainly the toughest event I have ever entered. Finding the mental strength to do repeated laps when you are tired is going to be one of the hardest aspects. Raising loads of money for Light Relief will help us endure the pain and keep us going, especially in the final stages, so please donate what you can."

The adventurous trio are currently preparing for this gruelling challenge, putting in hours of training to ensure they are in great shape for June. If you would like to support their efforts and help motivate them to continue working hard in preparation, please visit their dedicated fundraising page www.justgiving.com/teamlightrelief

Contributions donated on Just Giving will go straight to Light Relief. However if you would like to support the team but would prefer not to donate online, please send your donations to Shane McGreevy at PLASA (cheques payable to Light Relief) or contact him for Light Relief's bank details shane.mcgreevy@plasa.org. Please mention it's for the Team Light Relief challenge.

(Jim Evans)