Members of the Kingswood community have raised over £10,000 for two charities after completing an eight-hour cycling challenge.
46-year old Lisa Leonard, an exercise instructor who lives in the town and teaches indoor cycling, led the challenge at Kingswood Active Lifestyle Centre on Saturday 23rd February.
Over 40 people turned up at the Centre’s Group Cycle Studio to pedal alongside Lisa and her class, with another 60 supporting them throughout the day. Of the 40 participants, nine completed the full eight-hour challenge.
Five instructors led classes throughout the day and uptake was extremely high – with participants racking up an average of 95 miles on each of the studio’s 20 bikes. In addition, each bike station saw an average of 3,865 calories burned throughout the eight-hour session, which is the equivalent of 17 Mars bars.
The funds raised will now be donated to Cancer Research UK and Bowel Cancer UK, which hold sentimental value for Lisa and members of her cycling class.
“My Mum was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer in May last year, so these charities are extremely close to my heart. So much can happen in a short space of time, and when Mum passed away just a few months later in the August, I was left questioning ‘what can I do to help’. More research into this type of cancer might help someone in the future, so there was no doubt that I wanted to raise money for Cancer Research UK.” explains Lisa.
“And sadly, our decision to fundraise for Bowel Cancer UK has similar roots, as one of the ladies in our cycling group recently lost her grandfather to cancer.”
While the charities are close to home, fundraising efforts haven’t been limited to Lisa and her group cycling classes. Members of the community have helped to pedal the fundraising forwards with online funding sites, and local businesses – including a beautician, a barber and the butchers – have displayed collection buckets in their premises.
“The support we’ve received has been incredible, and it really highlights the community spirit within the local area. We were aiming to raise £2,000 for each charity, so to finish the challenge with a total of £10,000 is slightly overwhelming. Now that we’ve completed this challenge, I’d like to think we can do something else in the future and continue to make a difference to those suffering from cancer!”
Centre Manager at Kingswood Active Lifestyle Centre, Martyn Hinam, said: “Our centre prides itself on being a real part of the community, so we were delighted to support Lisa in organising and hosting this charity cycling challenge.”
“We know that a lot of hard work and dedication has been put into the fundraising efforts, so we’re thrilled that Lisa and her team have been able to raise so much money for two great causes. We look forward to supporting with any future charity challenges the class decides to pursue.”
Kingswood Active Lifestyle Centre is one of five lifestyle Centres and a dual-use Sports Centre operated across South Gloucestershire by the not for profit organisation Circadian Trust.
To find out more about Kingswood Active Lifestyle Centre, please visit: https://activecentres.org/centres/kingswood/
