Cartridge People sponsor London to Paris bike ride event in aid of Mind Charity

On September 3^rd and 4^th, Cartridge People will be proudly sponsoring a 24 hour London to Paris bike ride to help raise money for Mind Charity.

The 180 mile trip from London to Paris will be taken on by a group of AWIN employees (one of our marketing partners).

To help the AWIN team reach their incredible £9,000 fundraising target, we will be sponsoring one of the riders taking part in this exciting challenge.

Our sponsored rider is Michele, who is 24 years old and works for AWIN in account development.

We interviewed Michele to find out more about him, the event and his reasons for taking part:  

Tell us a bit about yourself….

My name is Michele, I am 24 years old and I am an Italian national born in Rome. As a child I lived in Italy, France and Spain before settling in the UK when I was 9 years old and I haven’t left since. I went to school in Warwick and studied international relations at Nottingham University. I now live in London and work in affiliate marketing at AWIN!

Tell us more about the Affiliate London2Paris Cycle event and what’s involved?

Twenty AWIN colleagues and I, led by Robert Davidson will be undertaking the epic task of cycling to Paris from London in 24 hours. I have no doubt that sustaining a cycling pace for so long and on so little sleep is going to be both physically and mentally challenging. Yet our efforts will not be in vain thanks to the amazing contribution of the Cartridge People and other sponsors who are helping us reach our target of £9,000 to donate to the incredible charity Mind.

What inspired you to take part in this event?

I strongly believe that it’s important to challenge yourself and take part in new experiences. It’s too easy in this day and age to be sucked in to the hamster wheel and let the months go by in a mindless monotonous rhythm. My hope is that this challenge will give me a fresh perspective on life and what I am capable of.

What does it mean to you to be raising money for Mind? Do you have a personal connection to the charity?

One of my close friends, Rowan, tragically took his own life four years ago shortly after completing his university degree. This experience, as well as deeply upsetting, was extremely confusing for me. I had always seen Rowan (and I am not exaggerating) as the ‘happiest person I knew’. He was always so energetic and enthusiastic and had the ability to render any activity we did together twice as fun as it would have been otherwise. As a consequence hearing that he had taken his own life did not add up in my head. The more I discussed this with my peers, the more I realised how woefully ignorant I had been and how Rowan’s story occurs all too often.

What remains one of the most upsetting parts of Rowan’s story is that he suffered in silence and did not feel that he could confide his deep sadness to even his closest friends and family. This is why I have the deepest respect and gratitude for Mind’s objectives. It is only be speaking openly about mental health that we can break the stigma, encourage people to seek help and ultimately save lives.

What are you most looking forward to about taking part?

Steak Frites and the end of the journey…

In all seriousness, I’m looking forward to the bond and camaraderie this experience is going to create in our team. We will struggle together, but we will also succeed together. I think sharing a drink and a meal at the end of the journey with these people will be a beautiful experience.

Have you taken part in any other challenging events like this in the past? If so what were they?

A group of friends and I took part in the Amsterdam half marathon in 2017 in honour of Rowan. We raised £8,000. The event was called ‘Run for Rowan’.

Tell us a bit about how have you been training for the event?

I’ve been cycling from central London to Amersham (about 60km), to visit my sister and my new born nephew. I also cycle to work everyday.

Why do you cycle? What motivates you?

To begin with it was mainly practical. Being cramped on a boiling hot tube, unable to breathe, early in the morning is probably the most effective way to ruin my day. So cycling provided me with a more comfortable, cheaper and faster way to get to work. I soon learned to love the activity and found it to be an excellent way to discover parts of London I had never seen before. It’s also a great way to explore whilst on holiday.

If you could cycle any route in the world tomorrow, where would you go and why?

I think it would have to be somewhere in China. I heard they have absolutely mind-blowing countryside and I’d be keen to try some authentic Asian food!

Finally, how can people sponsor you or follow your progress?

People can support us by donating and clicking here.

Mind Charity provide advice and support to empower those experiencing mental health problems. They also campaign to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding. You can find out more about Mind and the great work they do here.

We’ll keep you updated on Michele’s progress over the course of the ride via Twitter and look forward to finding out how much he and his colleagues raised.