Fundraising

There is no separate fundraising committee but that does not mean the club is no longer raising money for good causes. On the contrary, in recent months Chelmsford has distributed donations to more local organisations than ever before as we'll as continuing to support international projects.

President’s bike ride 2024

Report by President Francis

28 August 2024

At 9:45 am, in the company of three cycling friends who rode with me for the first eighteen miles, I set off on the first leg of my two-day Rotary Cycle Challenge, to ride from Debenham to Chelmsford. There I would stay overnight, attend the weekly meeting the next day, and then pedal back to Debenham. The first part of the route, through some quiet and lovely Suffolk and Essex countryside, was very enjoyable, despite quite a few hills. The final dozen or so miles, first alongside the A12, then through Hatfield Peverel and Boreham, and finally along cycle tracks, was less enjoyable, more of a means to an end.

Through the wonders of modern technology, I was able to keep Jenny informed of my progress by using the location function on WhatsApp. I made good progress and arrived in Central Park at 5 pm, to enjoy a relaxing coffee and chat with the various Rotarians who had kindly turned out to greet me. My legs had done well to that point, but soon felt leaden when I sat down, a precursor to quite a bit of cramp later in the evening.

29 August 2024

I had an early start the next morning, as I had arranged to meet Pam Scammell at 9 am on Springfield Green, from where she was setting off on her ride to Edinburgh. John Watkins kindly came along as well and took some photos for me. Pam’s cycling companion for the day, Ron, who had come from Ilford and was riding a small wheeled Brompton bike, was also sporting a Rotary snood, sold to him by John, on his head. I was pleased to hear from Pam later in the day that she and Ron had safely made it to their first overnight stop at Whittlesford, in Cambridgeshire, and that she now realised Essex wasn’t as flat as it is made out to be!

I left the Club’s lunchtime meeting around 2:15 pm for my return ride in a positive frame of mind after the discussion. It was good to get the noise of the A12 out of my ears when I reached Kelvedon, and the rest of the ride was a delight, as the weather was perfect for cycling, a few degrees cooler than the previous day and a gentle south westerly breeze to help push me home. The route was largely the same as the previous day, except that when I crossed the border into Suffolk at Bures, rather than following the Stour valley to Nayland, I headed north-east, to Assington and Boxford, then Kersey, where I paused for some refreshment.

That included a couple of bananas; when I had mentioned the attacks of cramp to Jenny, she had suggested I eat some bananas as the potassium would help and they seemed to do the trick, as I had no cramp after I got home. I had the warmth of the sun on my back until around 7.30 pm, when it fell low in the sky, but I was near to home by then, so did not need extra clothing, although I did put my lights on for the last couple of miles. The church clock said 7.45 pm when I passed by, so I made it home just as the sun was setting for the day.

Some more detailed reflections of the ride can be found here.