Zara Tindall, William Fox-Pitt, Joe Stockdale and Jack Whitaker are set to be among up to 100 supporters joining the Cycle4Caroline team on the last leg of their epic journey.
The former world and European eventing champion, the multiple medallist and the two leading young showjumpers will join the core team who left Blair Castle in Scotland on 20 November to cycle 684 miles to The Savoy hotel in London, arriving in time for the British Eventing Support Trust (BEST) ball on Saturday (30 November).
The ride was organised in memory of eventer Caroline March, who died in March aged 31, nearly two years after she suffered spinal injuries in a cross-country fall. By today it had raised nearly £124,000, for BEST and Spinal Research.
“The challenge reached in excess of £100,000 in donations by the end of day four, when the team faced driving snow and freezing conditions courtesy of Storm Bert,” a spokesperson for Cycle4Caroline said. “Refusing to give up, the team opted to walk a stretch of the journey before remounting to complete the stretch after some nine hours on the move.”
Supporters are invited to join the riders for the last leg, of about 37 miles from Windsor to London, on Saturday.
Joe, who will be among them, said: “Spinal Research is a charity close to home as my dad, the late Tim Stockdale, broke his neck in a fall and came back from it to ride again.
“I am looking forward to taking part in the Cycle4Caroline. I’m sure our competitive edge will come out as well to see who can get to the Savoy quickest!”
Jack added that he is up for the challenge of the ride.
“I’m normally at home riding horses not bikes so it might get interesting!” he said “It is for a great cause and hopefully we can raise as much money as possible for Spinal Research.”
The core team who set off from Blair are:
- European gold and silver medallist Piggy March
- Caroline’s brother Tom March
- Double Olympic gold medallist and BEST chair of the board of trustees Ian Stark OBE
- BEST patron Alastair Wilson
- Medal-winning eventer Holly Woodhead
- Top-level eventer Nini French
- Racesafe Director Tommy How
- Former top-level eventer founder Catriona Williams
- Brett Bullimore was forced to withdraw as he suffered an injury owing to a crash on day three
Tom said: “We’re really focused on making Cycle4Caroline a success. I’m looking forward to the whole challenge and being able to achieve something positive in Caroline’s memory for the benefit of others.
“If we can make a difference to the lives of others that will make all the work worthwhile. Caroline’s life was completely transformed by her spinal injury, and she really believed in the need to pursue scientific advances to find a cure for spinal cord injuries.”
- To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout major shows such as London International and more, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website
You may also be interested in:
‘Don’t be afraid to hope’: rider paralysed in fall joins bike marathon in memory of fellow eventer
Piggy March among those tackling epic Cycle4Caroline ride to raise half a million pounds for charity
Piggy March: ‘It’s definitely not all downhill on the way home from Blair’
‘I was lost and grieving, I needed a challenge’ – Piggy March on 1100km charity cycle ride
Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round
