Visit to Acorn House

On Friday 11th June team members Dean, Davidson, Gimson and Pemberton went to visit Acorn House, the 'home from home' accommodation unit for the families of long term patients at Addenbrooke's Hospital. After a few wrong turns around the maze that is the Addenbrroke's Hospital complex we were pointed in the right direction and greeted by Acorn House's assistant manager, Jane Shields.

After a coffee and several biscuits we were given a tour of the building, we were all hugely impressed by Acorn House, especially how homely and warming it felt. The facilities and the rooms are excellent (best part being the display of our posters in the kitchen!), the visit has really made us realise how worthy a cause our chosen charity is and how proud we all are to be raising money and awareness for them.

We would all like to thank Jane at Acorn House for showing us around and being so hospitable.

New Sponsors Announced

We are delighted to announce 3 new corporate sponsors for our cycle to Casablanca in aid of The Sick Children's Trust.

Cambridge car dealership Marshall's Motor Group have become our biggest sponsor by kindly making a donations both directly to Acorn House, and also agreeing to contribute towards the cost of our camping equipment. www.marshallweb.co.uk

Orwell Truck and Vans similarly helped us by helping us to buy a bike GPS which, with only two geographers in the party, will be essential to guide us through foreign territories: www.orwelltruckandvan.co.uk

NYK logistics are our third new sponsor who have very kindly donated £500 directly to Acorn House on our behalf: www.nyklogistics.com

These are added to support already received from Ben Hayward Cycles in Cambridge and The Bicycle Travel Network.

Without the support of our sponsors our trip would not be possible. Individually we have paid for the cost of our bikes and will be paying living costs en-route but our student loans are struggling to afford other essential items, such as tents and GPS, which companies have helped us with. In return we offer companies publicity through the local (Cambridge) press and a range of branding opportunities on our kit and website.

Despite the fantastic level of support we haev already received we would love to hear from any new potential sponsors. If you think you may be able to help of know someone who can please get in touch at cambridgetocasablanca@googlemail.com

More information can be found at the sponsors page of our website: www.cambridgetocasablanca.co.uk

Team member Tom Doble Said:

"We're absolutely delighted that Marshalls, NYK and Orwell Truck and Van have got on board with this venture. Without their support the whole trip would be inconceivable and it speaks volumes for what a good cause this is that we've had such a positive response, but if we could get one or two more sponsors to help us pay the cost of our camping equipment that would be even better"

Greece Boot Camp: Hugh and Rory's 4-Day Heat and Strength Training

Team members Hugh and Rory, having finished their exams, decided to embark on a gruelling 4-day training session in the harsh conditions of the Ionian island Zakynthos, exactly one month ahead of the big start date (17th July).

Daytime temperatures in Zakynthos soared to 40 degrees centigrade, and the mountainous terrain looked set to provide ideal conditions for some serious training, replicating some of the challenges that will be faced by the team in southern Spain and Morocco during the hottest months of the year.

Unfortunately, however, they were unable to locate a bike rental shop and so could not tackle the mountains on two wheels. Disconsolate, Hugh and Rory instead hired cars as a means of getting around. They had to satisfy their fitness obsessions with light swimming, base tan preparation, carb and protein loading, tennis, and football (watching).

Upon arrival back in the UK, team member Pemberton was asked for his thoughts on the training camp:

'Whilst it was obviously disappointing that we couldn't manage to hire bikes, we prepared for the Cambridge to Casablanca ride in other ways. For instance, we practised eating local food such as fried squid and fried cheese, and one lunch I even had a small 'kebab' (a Greek meat dish) as a starter, and a larger one as a main course - foreign food is something we'll have to get used to in France, Spain, and Morocco; apparently they don't even have chips in France - they have different things called 'French Fries'. The Spanish are famous for their afternoon 'siestas'; so this was something we also practised in Greece. Morocco, too, is comprised mainly of sand, so to prepare for this we put in some hard sessions lying on a beach - I can tell you, it was pretty tough at first, but you get used to it.'

Watch Hugh and Rory's training video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K21Xhk7_m6c

10 years of Acorn House

Last Wednesday we were lucky enough to be invited to to a celebration of 10 years of Acorn House, The Sick Children's Trust's home at Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge.

It was great to meet so many of the people involved in the day to day running and fund-raising for Acorn House. For those who don't know Acorn House is a home on the site of Addenbrookes hospital which provides 'home from home' accommodation for the families of seriously ill children. It is entirely run through voluntary donations and receives no government support.

Aside from demolishing most of the canapés on offer we talked to a lot of people about the cycle ride and received many pledges of support and sponsorship, as well as some good advice. The evening finished with a some short speeches including one from ourselves and one from Dr. Mary Archer, who does a great deal of work for Acorn House. The team are pictured with Mary below:

Interuniversity endurocycle II

On Wednesday 9th June team member George Dean undertook an 80 mile training ride from Oxford to Cambridge to return for a 3 day team bonding, training and organisation camp.

Departing from Oxford in mid-morning the scenic ride began well, with the new Trek 7.3 dealing easily with the rolling hills of Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. Indeed the only complications came from the young and inexperienced riders over-enthusiastic riding style which resulted in the seat working loose. Heading further East Dean happily passed over the Grand Union canal through Woburn country park and over the M1, marking the halfway point of the journey. Though still with plenty 'in the tank' thanks to 'the hogs' packed snacks the next 20 miles dragged as picturesque Buckinghamshire gave way to the great planes of Bedfordshire and the boredom of riding alone set in. Thankfully help was soon at hand as team members Pearson and Gimson appeared over the horizon to meet the tiring Dean at the 60 mile mark in Sandy. After a sizeable round of sugary snacks to replenish Pearson the three happily powered through the last 20 miles finding the camaraderie of group riding to detract from the dullness of the featureless Cambridge countryside, any tiredness in the legs and even the steady rain that fell for the last 15 miles.

All in all a successful trip, Dean commented at the end "the first 40 was fine, but after that the monotony of riding alone wasn't great - despite the rain the last 20 when riding as a 3 was much more fun and is making me really look forward to getting out as a 6 and starting the trip to Casablanca..."

Jeremy Ournalist