If you haven’t sponsored the GM Fundraising team yet, then here’s a reminder of why you should:
“Following the mamouth climb of Mont Ventoux the team has been brought back down to earth with a bang, 180 miles of rain, not great and very tiring.”
The guys have raised over £20,000 so far for Hope House Children’s Hospice, but their target is £55,000 so if you would like to make a donation go to:
For those of you that were concerned that I might be shutting down the website as I took the position as a ‘research officer’ at the University of Leeds need not worry.
I turned up for the interview, but turned around when I saw the queue:
So, looks like I’m stuck in the double glazing industry for a bit longer 
BA Cabin Crew Strike
When I first started planning a charity bike ride in India, I was keen to book a reliable airline to take us all to Bangalore on New Year’s Day.
So, I booked with British Airways – the world’s favourite airline!
It’s not the airlines fault, but we’re now stuck in a position where we have 22 people from the UK supposed to be flying out on New Years Day, and we have no idea if we’re going. All the cyclists have been working hard all year, both fundraising and training for the event.
Our Indian organisers have booked internal flights, an overnight sleeper train, reserved hotel rooms, bought bikes, hired staff and all this is in jeapordy. I cannot move the date as all these arrangements are in place, and the charity will lose money if we try put things back. BA cannot pay us back for the tickets as the flights have not been cancelled, and even if they did, I doubt we will be able to book a group of people on other carriers at such short notice and on the same dates.
To say I have no sympathy for the cabin crew is a massive understatement.
Leads
As predicted, potential customers are so wrapped up with Christmas preparations that leads seem to be very thin on the ground. I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but I hate Christmas. The bin at the side of my desk is overflowing with Christmas cards. Please don’t send me any more please.
Weather
There’s sleet and snow on the way for most of the country over the next few days. Luckily, most of it seems to be about to hit the South East which isn’t too bad, as we don’t install conservatories down there.
On top of this, we have short days so fitters can’t get as much installed, which ultimately means less product going through the factory. And all the roads are clogged up with people driving too slowly, or crashing into other vehicles because they can’t drive properly.
Why is it when I’m in the outside lane of the motorway, and I flash the car in front of me to move over, instead they slow down and switch their fog lights on?
If everyone drove 10mph faster than they do now, then congestion would be cured overnight as people would get to their destination quicker, hence less traffic on the roads.
Ride 4 Hope Book
On a more positive note, I have purchased a copy of the Ride 4 Hope book.
You’ve heard the rumours, read the blogs and now you can buy the book! Graeme Bailey, managing director of Business Micros has written and published his personal account of the cycling epic across the USA and it makes for great reading.
In September 2008 a team of cyclists from GM Fundraising cycled across the USA in aid of Hope House Children’s Hospices. Searing heat, poisonous snakes and a broken down RV were just some of the problems encountered and these stories and many more have now gone to print.
The square format coffee table book is 154 pages long and contains over 140 pictures. It is a limited print run and there are copies still available for £25 each, but you need to be quick. To reserve yours, e-mail gary@gmfundraising.co.uk or contact him direct on 07831 608882 before they all go.
