which can be found at http://www.dorsetandsomersetairambulance.co.uk/.The air ambulance is a particularly neccessary piece of equipment in counties such as Somerset and Dorset due to the possibility of accidents in out of the way areas. During the summer months in particular, many of the area's narrow and winding roads become clogged with holiday traffic, making any journey to hospital by conventional means a daunting prospect. The beaches, cliff tops and moorland areas where so many accidents occur; are also frequently inaccessible by road. The Air Ambulance can reach anywhere in the county in 19 minutes as it travels at 140mph and goes in a straight line from A to B, while an ambulance on the A39 can be about as quick as a horse-drawn cart with a wheel missing at times.
It costs £3500 or so per day to run, so it needs constant financial support in order to operate, but it does save lives. The reason for us getting involved in raising money for the air ambulance is that Sam's father, and my uncle, was involved in an accident in Porlock a few years ago. Had it not been for the air ambulance he may not be alive today. No better reason then for us to be involved, but this service saves the lives of both locals and tourists so it could help anyone.
You can visit Rob's page using the link provided (not yet) to see one of the reasons for our efforts (but beware, there may be mugshots!). There will be a few words from the man himself including his own thoughts on the air ambulance and the opportunity, if you know him (or not, it doesn't really matter), to make some silly comments which I will post up at the bottom.
To donate to the Air Ambulance please click this link - Air Ambulance
and the British Heart Foundation.
which can be found at http://www.bhf.org.uk/
The heart foundation appears to do more than I can put into a small snippet so I wont. A pretty simple message though - look after your heart. Unfortunately, even if you do look after yourself you may well have heart difficulties at some stage in your life so give a few quid and consider it as insurance against future events.
On the plus side cycling for a couple of hours every week is believed to cut the risk of heart disease by half, so get out on your bike and ride! In fact join us for a few days or a few hours during the trip if you can.
To donate to the British Heart Foundation please click on this link - BHF
Final Word
It's not easy to convey the importance of donations to these two charities, but if you have read this far you have probably grasped the concept anyway. Have a look at the website or get in contact with them and ask for more info. Failing that just click on this link here (when I have created it) and sponsor us for a fiver or so. That's nice and easy, we can all say thankyou with genuine sincerity, and you can be proud of yourself. Your donation may help save your own life at some point and will certainly help to save someone's life, maybe someone close to you. (Also don't forget to do the gift aid thing)
And if all of that is not enough then think about myself and Sam, into our 8th hour of cycling that day, soaked to the bone as the rain lashes down on us somewhere along the Welsh border, tired and hungry. While you are chuckling to yourself as you sit indoors, somewhere nice and warm, think about how much time, effort and cash we have poured into this bike-ride. Then think about someone having a heart attack in some inaccesible place in Dorset or Somerset. If all of that is not enough to guilt you into donating some money then you are a cold-hearted bastard and I give up!
A big, big thankyou to everyone who has donated to these worthy causes, helps out with them in some other way, or anyone who has helped us in the organising or the actual undertaking of this trip. Without you we would just be cycling round the country and arguing with each other for no reason at all!!
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