A big thank you to all those who sponsored the team, Alan himself raised over £1500.00 and the team as a whole raised well in excess of £5000.00 Once again a Big Thank you, for your generousity....  Alan Takes ..The Challenge: ..EXTRA MILE CHALLENGE 2009 SPONSORED CYCLE RELAY IN FRANCEAlan Small Director of SCC Gecko Ltd will be one of a team of four The Willen Hospice Harriers, pulling together to raise money for charity. 
The Team Occupation Fitness Ability Alan Small (DeeBee) Director Yeah No problem Phil Wordley (Speedy) Stockbroker FTSE Fitness Graham Denham(Lucky) Chef Mechilin stars do they help? Steve Barnes(Charlie) Chaplain Devine intervention Teams of 4 will ride this spectacular 500 plus mile route in relay mostly on quiet roads in rural France. Each cyclist will cover around 45 miles per day, typically in 4 or 5 stages. Raising money for charities:Two-thirds of the team’s sponsorship goes to the charity you choose. The remainder goes to three others chosen by the organizers (see details) and to Rotary charitable funds. The first 6 Challenges have raised over HALF A MILLION POUNDS for charity! All the money raised will go to charity as the team are paying all their own expenses. DAY ONE:Rouen to Le Mans (c180 miles)Our starting point is from Rouen just on the south of a loop of the Seine where we head south west through Upper & Lower Normandy countryside traveling through the gentle Alpes Mancelles in the beautiful Normandie-Maine National Parc, finishing at Le Mans, the motor racing capital of France. Le  Mans predates Roman times and is the birthplace of our King Henry II.. DAY TWO:Le Mans to Amboise (c180 miles)We get off to an early “Le Mans Start” aiming to use at least part of the famous 24 hour circuit. The Mulsanne straight, Indianapolis and Arnage corners are all on public roads and we plan to give you a real flavour of this famous race track. We then leave the Sarthe and aim for the Loire National Park where we finish the day cycling along the banks of the Loire and the Indre before arriving at Amboise for the night. This small city is dominated by the Chateau D’Amboise, a favourite of French Kings and the origin of the formal French garden. Ambose was also the last home of Leonardo da Vinci at the famous Close Luce.. DAY THREE:Circular route of the Loire Valley (c160 miles)Breaking with tradition we are trialling a two night stop at the same hotel. Relax longer – no rush to pack our bags in the morning and more leisure time in the evening to enjoy some Vouvray (only 10 kms from Amboise), before settling down to the celebratory end-of-challenge Gala Dinner. Off we go in search of the famous Loire Chateaux including Montrichard, Chenonceaux, Chaumont & Chambord. Keeping our eyes peeled, there are over 300 chateaux in the Loire Valley!. DAY FOUR:Recovering (c 8 hours)Relax in a warm bath, which must include a cold beer, it’s good for those aching muscles!! This must then be followed with a well earned, full body message, to ensure that all body parts are still fully operational. At this point, we should be able to walk in a normal fashion again, without looking like we still have the saddle between our legs!! . Now the serious stuff, to sponsor (YOUR Donations will help make a difference) or find out more about this, please go to:
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