Representatives of local and national charities were up bright and early last Friday morning to receive cheques for monies raised by the members and friends of The Rotary Club of Hitchin Tilehouse during their epic cycle ride, from Hitchin to Scarborough, undertaken in June 2011.  The charities benefiting were Keech Cottage Care, The National Autistic Society, and The Prostate Cancer Charity, with each receiving £5,000.  Their representatives, Claire Collings, Siobian Smith, and Alex McKenzie respectively all spoke passionately about their charities and explain how the money raised would assist them.

The ride, the brainchild of Tilehouse member David Rickels, saw 2 tandems, and a trandem (That's a 3 seater cycle.) cover the 216 miles from Hitchin to Scarborough in 4 days.  The 7 riders, and their support crew of Tilehouse members and friends stopped at various locations along the way to collect additional funds. "The support was fantastic" said keen cyclist David, "it was great to know that we had the support of so many, and that we were helping 3 such deserving charities with every mile we covered."

Rotary clubs along the way helped out too, Whittlesey near Peterborough arranged overnight accommodation for the riders and support crew at the end of day one, with Woodhall Spa in Lincolnshire doing the same at the end of day two. Towards the end of day three, the team crossed the mighty Humber, and after some shut-eye in a local motel, set-off on the final leg to Scarborough where they were met by fellow Rotarians massing for the annual District 1260 conference.

The intrepid riders were Steve Dyer, Tim Farr, Mark Manning, Tony Norgan, John Pearce, David Rickels, and Alan Wright.

Chris Holmes took the opportunity to present Claire, from Keech Hospice Care, with a cheque for £1,820 raised by December Tree of Lights appeal at St Mary's, and Andrew Phillips also presented Alex McKenzie, from The Prostate Cancer Charity, with £150 he had raised personally via the Movember initiative.

 "We like mornings when we can give over £17,000 to charity" said Vice President of Tilehouse Maggie Dyer, "it reminds us all about Rotary's core values - Service Above Self".      

If you want to know more about Rotary, please email info@tilehouserotary.org or to follow the activities of The Rotary Club of Hitchin Tilehouse, please visit and like our "Friends of Hitchin Tilehouse" Facebook page.