Date: 21 September 2006
Norwood Bike Riders Conquer The Holy Land
In an amazing feat of endurance, 24 cyclists pedalled nearly 600km over five days in Norwood’s Israel Bike Ride, braving steep hills and temperatures of more than 40 degrees, to raise £90,000 for Anglo-Jewry’s leading Children and Family Services Charity. The bike riders, who had to adapt their original route because of the recent conflict in Northern Israel, began their journey in Hamei Yoav, near Ashkelon, and travelled via Jerusalem to Eilat; their final destination. En route, they took in deserts, ancient monuments, vineyards and waterfalls.
Two of the riders, John Feutchwanger and Philip Lee, residents of Ravenswood Village, Norwood’s residential community for adults with learning disabilities, cycled the route on tandems. Another challenger, Melvyn Segal, was accompanied by his two daughters, Sara, 22 and Sofie, 20. Everyone was presented with medals at the end of the challenge, after which the whole group enjoyed a well-earned rest day by the sea before flying home.
Judith Barnett, Challenges Manager at Norwood, organised the ride and hailed it a great success. She said: “Cycling through Jerusalem was unbelievable, and some of the views that we encountered during the trip were stunning. It was particularly heartwarming to see the sense of achievement among our service users, one of whom literally jumped for joy when he received his medal. It was a perfect illustration of why we do these challenges”.
For more information please contact David Wosner, Public Relations Officer at Norwood on 020 8420 6900 or email: david.wosner@norwood.org.uk
