9 September 2019
Poole man cycles 1,300 miles
Jamie Smith was only 14 when his cousin Adam passed away on the Piam Brown children’s cancer ward at Southampton Children’s Hospital.
Now, in what would have been Adam’s 30th year, Jamie (30) from Poole is cycling 1,300 miles in his memory. Jamie comments:
The ride itself is all about my cousin. We were the best of friends and did everything together. Adam had been battling bowel cancer for a few years, before it suddenly came back really aggressively as bone cancer. He sadly passed just a few months later in 2002.
I wanted to celebrate and honour Adam’s life, so will be embarking on an extended version of John O’Groats to Land’s End.
Adam was only 13 when he lost his battle with cancer so I wanted to make this a prominent number when planning the ride. I’m travelling 1,300 miles in 13 days, trying to raise £13,000 for Southampton Children’s Hospital Charity, specifically for the Piam Brown ward.”
Piam Brown is the regional cancer centre for the Wessex region, and they treat children from a day old to 18 years for all types of cancer. Every year they treat around 90 new families. Jamie continues,
“I will be riding solo on this challenge, and will be spelling out Adam Smith as I go, stopping in Aberdeen, Dundee, Aberystwyth, Milton Keynes, Southampton (stopping at the hospital), Minehead, Ilfracombe, Tavistock, and Helston.
The final day of the ride (24 September) will be Adam’s 30th birthday, and will keep me motivated for the rest of the ride. It is also my 31st birthday on day 10, but I won’t have much time to celebrate as I have 106 miles to cover that day!”