Sunshine welcomes 2000 to gruelling hills of County Durham

2000 riders made their way across the start line of the inaugural Marie Curie Cancer Care Etape Pennines,

Durham, Sunday 7th October: 07.08am saw the sun rise as 2000 riders made their way across the start line of the inaugural Marie Curie Cancer Care Etape Pennines, an IMG Challenger World event, today in Durham.

The 78 mile closed road event was already anticipated as ‘the toughest closed road sportive in Great Britain’. The 2313 meters of climbs challenged riders across the breathtaking Pennines hills and put County Durham firmly on the map as a premier cycling destination. The event follows in the footsteps of its 6 year old counterpart, the Marie Curie Cancer Care Etape Caledonia, which is now at capacity at 5,500 riders and sells out within a week each year. These unique closed road sportives form the foundation to the Marie Curie Cancer Care Etape Series portfolio which is set to expand for 2013.

The event saw an average completion time of 6.07 with the winner of the female category, Hannah Summut finishing in a time of 4:54 and Dave Hopper prevailed as the men’s fastest and overall winner, finishing in a time of 4:07.
Riders were joined by three time Olympic medalist and event Ambassador Rob Hayles who, despite not having trained as much as he’d liked, took on the challenge. Rob had already billed the event as ‘one of the toughest sportives in the UK’ after riding part of the route earlier in the year and didn’t disagree having now completed it, saying …

“A lot of today backed up my choice to retire! But, I can’t deny there were many moments that made me remember why I got into cycling in the first place. A dramatic and beautiful route, just as tough as I expected, and I enjoyed meeting many great people riding it. Well done to all those raising money for Marie Curie Cancer Care, it’s a fantastic cause and your funds will no doubt make a big difference.”

The event encourages every participant to raise funds for the charity partner, Marie Curie Cancer Care, who are set to raise £120,000 for the charity to provide vital care and support to people with terminal cancer and other terminal illnesses through the participant’s support.

One such member of the Daffodil Team was Aidan Carson, son of the late Frank Carson (Comedian), who was riding in memory of his father. Upon finishing the Etape Pennines, he commented:

“Marie Curie Nurse’s looked after my dad so well, without them our family would have been lost. They gave the family much needed rest and attended to dad’s every needs. They really were awesome. It’s been an emotional day but I’m pleased to be able to raise funds for Marie Curie and say thank you for the amazing care they gave my dad.”

Over 600 of the riders fundraised for Marie Curie Cancer Care, many of whom were donning the exclusive Endura ‘Team Daffodil’ cycling jersey. A Marie Curie Cancer Care team lined the finish line to cheer riders in after completing this amazing challenge along with friends, family members and locals. One such supporter was local Marie Curie nurse, Tracy Evans, who works in the North East Region’s home nursing team and today wanted to join the team at the finish line even after working a night shift.

Fabian French, Director of Fundraising at Marie Curie Cancer Care said:

“Thank you to all the cyclists who completed this gruelling event and have been raising funds for Marie Curie Cancer Care. Your efforts will enable Marie Curie Nurses to provide more vital care to people with terminal cancer and other illnesses. And if you are yet to start fundraising, it’s not too late to get sponsorship from friends and family.”

James Robinson, Managing Director at IMG’s Challenger World finished by saying:

“Today’s event was the result of months of careful planning, activated by over 300 event staff. The event is organized by IMG Challenger World and partnered by Durham County Council and Visit County Durham. A huge thank you must also go to our event sponsors: Zipvit, Mavic, Highland Spring, Scott, Endura and Marathon Photos. “

If you are interested in taking on the challenge in 2013 then please register your interest on www.etapepennines.co.uk to receive an exclusive 48 hour window of opportunity to sign up before entries are open to the general public.

Website: http://www.etapepennines.co.uk