Staff from West of England accountancy firm Old Mill have taken part in a 300-mile cycle ride from Paris to Somerset to raise nearly £8,000 for charity School in a Bag.
Thirteen staff made the gruelling trek which started under the Eiffel Tower and ended at Old Mill’s Yeovil office four days later. The team cycled 100 miles on their first day in the saddle after leaving the French capital.
The money raised will help Yeovil-based charity School in a Bag (SIAB) deliver rucksacks filled with stationery, learning resources and eating utensils to poor, orphaned, vulnerable and disaster-affected children around the globe.
The challenge was organised by David Rice, who is based in Old Mill’s Yeovil office, but staff from its other bases in Wells, Melksham and Exeter also took part – with some riders taking up cycling specially for the challenge.
SIAB founder Luke Simon and volunteer Simon Pearson joined the Old Mill team on the ride.
Luke said: “They made it really good fun. We had a really great cross section from across the company, some quite junior staff right up to one of the firm’s founders. It was just amazing that we had this group of people that just gelled so unbelievably well.”
It was the second cycling challenge organised by David. Last July 19 staff took part in the Old Mill Office Cycle Challenge, when staff raised £15,500 for SIAB – three times more than their target – by cycling the 140 miles between Old Mill’s offices in two days.
Pictured, from left: SIAB volunteer Simon Pearson, Old Mill's Simon Cole, Hannah Ridley, Tony Westhead, David Rice, Elaine Kinsella, Kevin Wheldon, Stuart Grimster, Sally Harrison, Phil Kirkpatrick, Nick Baker, Will Vincent, Louise Rycroft and Chris Tweedie, and School in a Bag founder Luke Simon
