Introducing 82-year-old Gina Harris who is cycling the length of the UK from Lands’ End to John O’Groats (LEJOG) in support of Women’s Aid and Refuge.
The 1,083-road trip is one of the hardest challenges around, but Gina has set her bar and peddles high to support two charities that she is passionate about after reading about all the work they have done over the years for women experiencing domestic abuse. So, in a bid to raise as much awareness and money as possible for Women’s Aid and Refuge, Gina is raring to get training in 2022.
Gina Harris is set to become the oldest woman to cycle the ‘end-to-end’ challenge, with 87-year-old Donald Wells being the oldest man to have successfully completed the challenge in 2018.
Although Gina does not consider herself to be a sprinter and describes herself as more of a ‘long-distance plodder’, she also wants to complete this challenge to showcase just how important physical wellbeing is for women everywhere.
Gina Harris commented: “I will be riding my old steel touring bike and carrying my luggage, which has a combined weight of more than 30kg, so a lot of hard work and practice begins now. I won’t be completing the challenge until June 2022, so I have enough time to get practicing with the help of my Son and Cycling UK.
I have previously travelled extensively by bicycle around Europe and across America, so it will not be the first long cycle journey I have ever made, but it will certainly be my last BIG one.”
Alan Head, formerly Secretary of Redditch & Bromsgrove Member Group, Cycling UK commented: “Gina Harris has cycled with Cycling UK for many years, and we wish her all the best in her attempt to raise money for Women’s Aid and Refuge by cycling the length of Britain.
There are constant stories of shocking abuse and cruelty to women and their children and because public services are insufficiently funded to help people in this predicament, the work of charities is vitally important.”
Louise Firth, Director of Fundraising and Communications at Refuge said: “People taking on incredible challenges makes such a difference to our work at Refuge, enabling us to reach and support more women and children impacted by domestic abuse. We are thrilled to hear about Gina’s impressive upcoming journey cycling the length of the UK from the southwest to the very north eat, we’ll be wishing her the best every step of the way!”
Faye Connelly, Fundraising Manager at Women’s Aid, said: “We are so grateful
to Gina for her incredible support for Women’s Aid, and we want to say a huge thank
you to her for taking on this extraordinary challenge for the charity. Gina’s determination to raise as much as she can helps us reach even more
survivors of domestic abuse, in need of our vital support.”
To find out more about Gina Harris and her incredible mission visit www.le-jog.co.uk
Donation pages for both charities below:
Refuge – https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/gina-harris9
Women’s Aid – www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Gina-Harris10
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FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT GINA HARRIS AND HER CHALLENGE FROM END TO END PLEASE CONTACT:
DAISY CRAYDON PR
07539494720
Media Kit available here: https://zoom.us/j/96550980579?pwd=aEUrQ2p1S0xLV1FQaGhJRFdWZUt3QT09
ABOUT GINA HARRIS
Gina Harris was born in 1940 in Buxton, Derbyshire and both her parents contributed to the war effort. Gina’s Father Richard was a Desert Rat in the army, and her Mother Unity worked in Radar. Gina’s childhood was a happy one, and she was the eldest of four siblings. Although she never considered herself a keen athlete, she put her heart and soul into every Hockey and Netball game she played, but preferred running circuits around the playing field.
Gina spent most of her working life as a self-employed Advertising Photographer, and much later in her career she spanned into following her passion of gardening as a career.
Surrounded by a loving family which consists of two children, her daughter and son whom she plays an active role in their lives. Gina always encouraged sport when her children were younger and they often enjoyed pony trekking, canoeing and long walks around their beautiful hometown in Birmingham.
Gina took up cycling when she was aged 50 and joined the group ‘Cycling UK’ to follow her new passion with even more dedication. She now wants to raise as much money for Women’s Aid and Refuge to support women across the country, and the two charities that she has read so much about over the years.
At 81 years old, Gina is set to become the oldest women to cycle end to end in the UK, and we want to support her every peddle of the way.
ABOUT REFUGE
Refuge supports thousands of women and children on any given day and runs the National Domestic Abuse Helpline, which is the gateway to accessing specialist support across the country. More than one in four women in England and Wales experiences domestic abuse at some point in their lifetime, and two women a week are killed by a current or former partner.
Please signpost to Refuge’s National Domestic Abuse Helpline 0808 2000 247, available 24
hours a day 7 days a week for free, confidential specialist support. Or visit www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk to fill in a webform and request a safe time to be contacted or to access live chat (live chat available 3pm-10pm, Monday to Friday). For support with tech abuse visit refugetechsafety.org
ABOUT WOMEN’S AID
Women’s Aid is a national charity working to end domestic abuse against women and
children. Since 1974 we have been at the forefront of shaping and coordinating
responses to domestic abuse, with survivors at the heart of our work. We are a
federation of over 170 organisations that provide just under 300 local lifesaving
services to women and children across the country.
If you are worried that your partner, or that of a friend or family member, is controlling
and abusive, go to womensaid.org.uk for support and information, including Live Chat,
the Survivors’ Forum, The Survivor’s Handbook, and the Domestic Abuse Directory. Live
Chat is open from 10am–6pm seven days a week for confidential expert support from
specialised support workers.
