The group of eight students will ride from Cock Lane in London to Dick Place in Edinburgh in the middle of November, all in the name of charity, as they seek to raise awareness of testicular cancer, prostate cancer, and men’s mental health.
The gruelling feat is expected to take 36 hours, and they have set themselves a donation target of £1500. The hardy group has set up a Movember donation link, which can be found on their Instagram page: @ldn_edi23.
The group of local Edinburgh-renowned cyclists is made up of Gregor McArthur, Calum Gundry, Alex Mutter, Will Brown, Tom Bonnor, Douglas Phillips, Conor Carleton, and Calum Dempster.
The University of Edinburgh cycling club has an illustrious history of bike rides to raise money for charity, having completed incredible feats in the past three years. The first was 100 laps of Edinburgh’s own Arthur’s Seat in 2021 (a repeated loop of 3.15 miles), followed by a 500-kilometre ride over 24 hours last year. Facing wind, rain, cold, and darkness on the Scottish borders
Callum Dempster told The Student, “We felt that this year we wanted to raise the bar even higher.”
“Last year we raised £3000 in just two weeks, and so we are making this year’s challenge even greater in terms of both physicality and donation target.”
“Men’s mental health and testicular and prostate cancer often take a backseat/go unsaid in daily life, yet they cause so much suffering and have such an impact on so many lives.”
“As cyclists, we all share a passion for bikes, and the places that a bike can take you, the memories it gives, with the amazing people that you meet.”
The group has been training hard throughout the Scottish winter in anticipation of the event, which will undoubtedly be an extraordinary test of endurance.
The University of Edinburgh Cycling Club has been the primary training crucible for the team but has also been a launchpad to make cycling more inclusive. The club already has several world-class athletes to its name, with Edinburgh Sports Scholars Amelia Tyler and Anna McGorum current members, as well as current under-23 world cross-country mountain bike champion Charlie Aldridge passing through its ranks.
The team made it clear that they “fully expect to encounter everything that British weather in November can throw at us,” highlighting how the event amounts not just to a feat of endurance but also a feat of mental fortitude.
But Dempster pointed out that “what we will put our minds and bodies through during this challenge has got nothing on what thousands of men go through on a daily basis.”
Image courtesy of Calum Gundry.