Category: 2019 Archive

#RideForFreedom2019, a 10-day charity cycle ride around England and Wales (Cardiff), powers in to central London on Anti-Slavery Day, Friday 18 October. Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE, who leads the APPG on Ethics and Sustainability in Fashion, will welcome the cyclists on their arrival at the north west corner of Westminster Bridge at 1pm.

Organised by Gordon Miller, CEO of Sustain Worldwide, a keen leisure cyclist, week one headed north from Watford to Manchester, via Cambridge, Corby, Nottingham, Barnsley and Elland. The second week departed Bristol for Cardiff, pedaled on to Stroud, Didcot, Bracknell and concludes in London later today.

The 800km ride, which commenced on 7 October, fundraises for Unseen and Hope for Justice. The UK based charities support the rehabilitation of the survivors of modern slavery, equip front line agencies and businesses with training advice and resources, and influence government and society to inspire change in legislation and policy.

Miller says: “Someone recently asked me why I’m organising and participating in #RideForFreedom2019. It’s simple: modern slavery is a heinous crime; it’s aligned with the work my communications business, Sustain Worldwide, does; I like to set myself one audacious challenge each year – this is the biggest yet; cycling is my sport thing and it gives me a goal to aim for.

“There are an estimated 13,000 people who are held as modern day slaves in the UK – although many believe these figures to be lower than the reality. When survivors are recovered they require a safe place, support and guidance to begin their rehabilitation. It costs £3,000 a month to support one woman in an Unseen safe house.”

The cyclists have visited several places, towns and cities on route that have a relevance to the anti-slavery movement. The ride started from BRE in Watford, and droped in for photo calls at the home of the Rights Lab at Nottingham University, Marshalls near Halifax, Hope for Justice in Manchester, Unseen in Bristol and the University of South Wales at Cardiff.

More than a dozen riders have cycled one or more of the stages alongside Miller who will ride them all. To date, 11 have pledged to ride the final stage into central London today on the annual Anti-Slavery Day.

Miller says: “From what began as an idea in my head, while on a ride on a cold day last December, my motivation has been kept high throughout the months of training by the support and encouragement of many others. I’ve cycled a few thousand kilometres during training and I can’t wait to start the ride to raise more awareness and funds to support survivors of modern slavery.”

🚴🏽 It’s just 1 week today until the start of #RideForFreedom2019. We’re calling in at BRE, Watford, which is home to BREEAM, the Rights Lab at Nottingham University, Marshalls Plc in Elland, and Hope for Justice in Manchester. Here’s the route. Follow our progress on twitter @GordonMiller81

🚴🏽 The Rights Lab Director, Professor Zoe Trodd, said: “We are delighted to host Gordon on his intrepid bike journey to raise money and awareness to support survivors of slavery. Gordon is an inspiration for us in the Rights Lab in his leadership and personal dedication to survivor-focused anti-slavery work.”

🚴🏽 In week 2, the 14-18th, we’ll be cycling Bristol-Cardiff-Stroud-Didcot-Bracknell-London. Several folk – including Andrew Wallis OBE, CEO Unseen – will ride the 50 miles from Bristol to Cardiff on the 14th. The University of South Wales will welcome us into Cardiff. Here’s the full second week’s route.

🚴🏽 We’re delighted that Baroness Lola Young OBE will meet us at Victoria Tower Gardens, London SW1P, on the final stage on Anti-Slavery Day, 18 October. Dean Stott, world record holder for cycling 14,000 miles in 99 days (yes, read that number again), will also be there to meet us. Come along too – the meeting point is the Buxton Memorial Fountain (pictured).

🚴🏽 We’ll be riding several of the National Cycle Network routes that criss-cross the country. They’re mostly traffic-free or traffic light routes; look out for the distinctive blue signage with a cyclist logo and red number when you’re out and about. I’ve enjoyed riding the routes while training, and you can read about my exploits on the Sustrans’ website.

🚴🏽 If you’re an ethical consumer (and who isn’t these days?!) £50 is donated to #RideForFreedom2019 when you buy a responsibly sourced, cool ‘n practical #CityBrix backpack, priced £150. Use the code RideForFreedom2019 at the checkout & you’ll receive a £25 discount too. Win! Win! KitBrix – No Fuss, Just Organised Kit. #Kitbrix

🚴‍♂️ The jerseys have arrived! Pictured here being modelled by yours truly. If you’d like to buy one they’re priced £69 and £18 of that is donated to the receiving charities. To order a high performance, sustainable (each one is made from 6 recycled plastic bottles) jersey, get in touch. Don’t the corporate supporters’ logos look fetching on the jerseys?! Many thanks indeed to BRE Group/BREEAM, Lowery, Marshalls Plc, Smarter Technologies and Sustain Worldwide who have enabled #RideForFreedom2019.

🚴🏽 So, let the ride begin! The training has been done. More than 1,000 kms were clocked in September – that’s my most ever in 1 month. I’ve cycled at least 5,000 kms in total. I’ve been lucky: most of it has been done in the sunshine; I’ve only had 3 punctures, and no incidents/accidents. Long may that continue…

🚴🏽 Finally, if you haven’t yet donated, now’s the time head over to JustGiving. Your donation will support the survivors of modern slavery via the work of Unseen and Hope for Justice. Thanks in expectation.

Please get in touch if you want to get involved, cycle, support, donate, sponsor or know someone who you think might.

To recap, the ride is to support the rehabilitation of survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice.

🚴🏽 August’s training highlights were 5 consecutive daily rides of 80km, followed by a day off, and then 5 more back to back rides of average 50km. The idea was to simulate the actual ride. Job done! I feel confident now for the real deal; I just need to stay fit and health until the ‘grand depart’ on 7 October.

🚴🏽 We’ve topped £1,000 in donations via the JustGiving page. That’s one-third of the £3,000 it costs to support 1 woman in an @UnseenOrg safe house for 1 month. To help make it to £3,000, please head over to JustGiving and donate what you can today.

🚴🏽 12 people have now signed up to cycle the final 40-mile final stage from Bracknell to London on 18 October, Anti-Slavery Day. Lola Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE will welcome us at Victoria Tower Gardens, beside the Houses of Parliament. If you’d like to cheer us ‘home’ we estimate we’ll be rolling in between 1-2pm. Get in touch to find out more.

🚴🏽 There are 10 opportunities to ride an 80km stage of the route. Here’s the full route of 10 cities in 10 days from 7-18 October. Pictured is the first week’s route. Get in touch to discuss joining one. And if we are passing by your workplace, feel free to invite us to drop in for a photo call.

🚴🏽 University of South Wales are welcoming us into Cardiff on stage 6 on 14 October. The culmination of the 80km ride from Bristol, watch this space for more information on the plans for the day that marks the beginning of the week of Anti-Slavery Day on 18 October.

🚴🏽 We’re dropping in for photo calls at BRE (Watford), Unseen (Bristol), Rights Lab at Nottingham University (Nottingham), Marshalls (Huddersfield), Hope for Justice (Manchester) Get in touch if you want to ride or arrange for us to drop in to your workplace.

🚴🏽 The jersey order is in with sustainable (each one is made from 6 recycled plastic bottles) kit manufacturer Presca Teamwear. Nice, eh?! We’ll have the jerseys by 26 September. If you’d like to buy one they’re priced £69 and £18 of that is donated to our receiving charities. To order a high performance jersey, get in touch.

🚴🏽 £50 is donated to #RideForFreedom2019 when you buy a responsibly sourced, cool ‘n practical #CityBrix backpack, priced £150. Use the code RideForFreedom2019 at the checkout & you’ll get also receive a £25 discount too. Win! Win! KitBrix – No Fuss, Just Organised Kit. #Kitbrix

🚴🏽 Last but by no means least, a big thanks to all our corporate supporters – BRE Group/BREEAM, Lowery, Marshalls Plc, Smarter Technologies and Sustain Worldwide – who have enabled #RideForFreedom2019 to happen.

🚴🏽 Follow my training exploits #RideForFreedom2019 on twitter @GordonMiller81, Instagram gordomm8124 and LinkedIn.

Please get in touch if you want to get involved, cycle, support, donate, sponsor or know someone who you think might.

To recap, the ride is to support the rehabilitation of survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice.

🚴🏽 July’s training highlight was a super 126km ride, with Miles Watkins, from North London to Worthing via Steyning Bowl and the South Downs. That’s the signpost for them behind me.

🚴🏽 Whoop! We’ve hit £1,000 via the JustGiving page. That’s one-third of the £3,000 it costs to support 1 woman in an @UnseenOrg safe house for 1 month. To help make it to £3,000, please head over to JustGiving and donate what you can today.

🚴🏽 10 people have now signed up to cycle the final 40-mile final stage from Bracknell to London on 18 October, Anti-Slavery Day. Lola Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE will welcome us at Victoria Tower Gardens, beside the Houses of Parliament. Get in touch if you’d like to ride it too.

🚴🏽 If you can’t join the ride on 18 October, why not get involved in one of the other stages? Here’s the full route of 10 cities in 10 days from 7-18 October. If we are passing by your workplace, feel free to invite us to drop in for a photo call.

🚴🏽 Unseen, one of our charity partners, has confirmed that stage 6, from Bristol to Cardiff on 14 October, will depart from the Hippodrome (pictured). Several Unseen team members will ride the ~50 miles into South Wales where we will rock up at USW for a photo call.

🚴🏽 We’re also dropping in for photo calls at BRE (Watford), Nottingham University (Nottingham), Marshalls (Huddersfield), Hope for Justice (Manchester) Get in touch if you want to ride or arrange for us to drop in to your workplace.

🚴🏽 Last chance! The jersey order is going in next week to sustainable kit manufacturer Presca Teamwear. To add your logo or enquire about ordering a high performance jersey, get in touch.

🚴🏽 £50 is donated to #RideForFreedom2019 when you buy a responsibly sourced, cool ‘n practical #CityBrix backpack. Use the code RideForFreedom2019 at the checkout & you’ll get also receive a £25 discount too. Win! Win! KitBrix – No Fuss, Just Organised Kit. #Kitbrix

🚴🏽 We’re delighted that Lowery a principal contractor to the rail industry, has joined BRE Group/BREEAM, Marshalls Plc, Smarter Technologies and Sustain Worldwide as a corporate supporter. Get in touch if you’d like to be a supporter too.

🚴🏽 Lastly, my training is on schedule for the ride. During August, I’ll be cycling 5 consecutive days of ~80km to simulate the first week of the Tour from Watford to Manchester. Follow my training exploits #RideForFreedom2019 on twitter @GordonMiller81 and LinkedIn.

Please get in touch if you want to get involved, cycle, support, donate, sponsor or know someone who you think might.

To recap, the ride is to support the rehabilitation of survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice.

#RideForFreedom2019 is the 10-day charity cycle ride across England and Wales (Cardiff) which takes place from 7-18 October 2019.

🚴🏽 We’re less than £50 short of raising the first £1,000 via the JustGiving page. Thanks a million to everyone who has donated – if you haven’t yet, there’s no time like the present… head over to the JustGiving page and help take us into 4 figures.

🚴🏽 It’s been a thrill to have several people say they’d like to join the ride for a stage or two. Dean Stott (pictured left ), world record holder for cycling 14,000 miles across South and North America in 99 days, has confirmed he’ll ride with us on 17 and 18 October. Get in touch if you’d like to participate.

🚴🏽 The ride route – that takes in 10 cities in 10 days – has been finalised. If you’re located in one of the cities or on a route between, why not ride a stage (and get your colleagues involved too), or invite us to drop in to your workplace for a photo call?

🚴🏽 The Rights Lab (several of whom are pictured right with Kevin Hyland OBE) at the University of Nottingham is the latest to confirm an invitation to visit their HQ. We’ll detour to their Nottingham campus on 10 October. We’re also dropping into BRE (Watford), Marshalls (Huddersfield), Unseen (Bristol), Hope for Justice (Manchester), University of Wales (Cardiff).

🚴🏽 The final stage rolls into London on 18 October, Anti-Slavery Day. Lola Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE will welcome us at Victoria Tower Gardens, beside the Houses of Parliament. Get in touch if you want to ride it.

🚴 My training is going well. It’s the halfway point from when I began in earnest (6 March) and the start of the ride (7 October), and I doubt I’ve been fitter in the last 30 years. The highlight in June (among several 80km rides and a consistent 5 days out of every 7 on the bike) was an epic and brutal 100km ride in Derbyshire with almost 1,500m of climbing, in the wind and rain. Here I am at the end of the ride…

🚴 If you want to “test your legs”, the next sociable “all abilities” training ride is taking place this Sunday (30 June). We’ll meet in North London/Herts at take in a  three-hour circular ride. It’s forecast to be a beautiful, sunny day. Come on out and get in touch for more info.

🚴🏽 Last call! We’re putting our order in during July for these stunning and sustainable jerseys (see attached) made up by high performance kit manufacturer Presca Teamwear  Each one is responsibly sourced and made from 6 recycled plastic bottles. There’s still a little jersey space left for a few more logos. So, if you let us know before 12 July, we’ll add your company’s logo.

Please get in touch if you want to get involved, cycle, support, donate, sponsor or know someone who you think might.

To recap, the ride is to support the rehabilitation of survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice.

🚴‍ I’ve pledged to do back to back (consecutive days) 100km rides when £1,000 is donated by 31 May – we’re less than £250 short of that so if you want to put me to the wheel, pls donate via the JustGiving page !today!

🚴 Did you know £3,000 could pay to support 1 woman in an Unseen safe house for 1 month? Donate via the JustGiving page and every penny you give goes directly to Unseen to help survivors of Modern Slavery.

🚴 We’ve nailed down the route that takes in 10 cities in 10 days. If you’re located in one of the cities or on a route between, why not ride a stage (and get your colleagues involved too), or invite us to drop in to your workplace for a photo call?

🚴 University of Wales in Cardiff is the latest to engage with us when we roll into/ through their city. We’re visiting BRE (Watford), GLAA and Nottingham Uni (Nottingham), Marshalls (Huddersfield), Unseen (Bristol), Hope for Justice (Manchester), and Lola Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE is welcoming us at Victoria Tower Gardens, beside the Houses of Parliament (London), on the final stage on 18 October, Anti-Slavery Day.

🚴 Why not get involved as a rider or as a supporter? You can ride one or as many stages as you like. World record holder Dean Stott and Miles Watkins of Tufeco have pledged to join a stage or two.

🚴 How about joining a sociable “all abilities” training ride for its own sake or as a precursor to riding a stage of the RideForFreedom2019? The next ride is on Sunday 30 June. We’ll start around 9am from North London/ Herts border and cycle a ~80km round trip through Hertfordshire. There will be several points where you can join / exit the ride so don’t feel you have to cycle the whole route. We’ll stop for brunch/lunch too. Get in touch to find out more.

🚴 We’re having some jerseys made up by high performance and sustainable kit manufacturer Presca Teamwear. in the next few weeks so we can raise awareness and encourage donations while we train in the run up to the Tour. They’re £69 each and 20% is donated to #RideForFreedom2019. This is the current Jersey design – if you can see yourself in one, get in touch as we’re going to print in June. Thanks to the designer, Phil.

🚴 Confirmed corporate sponsors are BRE Group/BREEAM, Marshalls, Smarter Technologies and Sustain Worldwide. Thank you one and all. There’s still a little jersey space left for a few more logos. So, if you let us know before 7 June we’ll add your logo to the first run of jerseys we’re having printed.

🚴 If you consider yourself an ethical consumer, when you buy a responsibly sourced, very cool and practical – I’ve put one to the test and it’s extremely functional and stylishly designed – #CityBrix backpack, £50 is donated to #RideForFreedom2019. It works as a weekend bag and a daily office/gym ‘locker’. Use the code RideForFreedom2019 at the KitBrix checkout & you’ll receive a £25 discount too. Win! Win! KitBrix – No Fuss, Just Organised Kit. #Kitbrix

🚴 Last but not least, training is going well. I’m putting in an ~80km/50m ride (which is the average daily stage length I’ll be riding each day for 10 days on #RideForFreedom2019) each weekend. That’s followed by 2-3 rides of ~30/40km and a couple of sessions on the trainer for an hour each week. So, an average 5-6 days a week. Obviously, finding time (I’m running a business too) is the biggest challenge, and I need to increase the daily rides to 60-80km. Thank goodness the long evenings are here.

P.S. for the cycling stato’s my watts output is now averaging 130 over 2 hour-plus rides (looking at historical Strava data it used to be ~100), and my average cycling speed is 23km/ph (used to be ~20km/ph). So, suffice to say, it’s all headed in the right direction.

Please get in touch if you want to get involved, cycle, support, donate, sponsor or know someone who you think might.

To recap, the ride is to support the rehabilitation of survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice.

🚴 Whoop! With a big shout out to everyone who has donated! #RideForFreedom2019 hit its first milestone 27 days early: raising £500 in donations. I pledged to do a 100km ride when we hit it – I did that on 7 April. I’ve now pledged to do back to back (consecutive days) 100km rides when £1,000 is donated by 31 May – we’re just £272 short of that so if you want to put me to the wheel, pls donate via the JustGiving page.

🚴‍ I’ve been invited to be an Authentic Ambassador for KitBrix – No Fuss, Just Organised Kit. #Kitbrix is a high performance bag system, built by athletes, for active people, families and professional athletes. Check out my video of the KitBrix range.  And If you consider yourself an ethical consumer, when you buy their responsibly sourced, v cool ‘n practical #CityBrix backpack, £50 is donated to #RideForFreedom2019. Use the code RideForFreedom2019 at the checkout and you’ll receive a £25 discount too – Win. Win. Win.

🚴 We’re having some jerseys made up, by high performance and sustainable kit manufacturer Presca Teamwear, in the next few weeks so we can raise awareness and encourage donations while we train. They’re £51 each if we order a minimum of 5. If you’d like one and/or your company’s logo on them, please get in touch by 14 May. The manufacturing time is 6 weeks so we should have them by the end of June. This is the current Jersey design – fetching, eh?! Thanks to the designer, Phil.

🚴‍ New confirmed corporate sponsors this month are BRE Group/BREEAM. They join Marshalls, Smarter Technologies and Sustain Worldwide. Thank you one and all. There’s still a little jersey space left for a few more logos. So if you let us know before 14 May we’ll add your logo to the first run of jerseys we’re having printed. We’re also arranging for the Tour to stop at sponsors’ offices for a photo call. So if that’s appealing to you, do get in touch.

Please get in touch if you want to get involved, cycle, support, donate, sponsor or know someone who you think might.

To recap, the ride is to support the rehabilitation of survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice.

🚴‍ Dean Stott, world record holder for cycling 14,000 miles in 99 days, has offered to ride a couple of stages with us. With pride, awe and a smidge of trepidation I can’t wait to ride alongside him. You can read more about Dean’s epic ride here

🚴‍ We’re thrilled with the first iteration of the Jersey design – thanks to the designer, Phil. Get in touch to find out how you can add your logo to the jersey, and/or participate in the ride too.

🚴‍ Lola, Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE, will welcome the Tour at Victoria Tower Gardens as it arrives in Westminster, Central London, on Anti-Slavery Day, 18 October. Thanks, Lola. Fittingly, its centrepiece is the Buxton Memorial which was erected to mark the abolition of slavery in 1834. Get in touch if you want to participate in this last stage of ~35 miles from Bracknell to London.

🚴‍ Nottingham and Manchester are getting involved too. The Tour will drop by the GLAA HQ and the Rights Lab at Nottingham University. And Hope for Justice will receive us at their Manchester HQ on Friday, 11 October.

🚴‍ I’ve been invited to be an ambassador for KitBrix – No Fuss, Just Organised Kit. Kitbrix is a high performance bag system, built by athletes, for active people, families and professional athletes. #KitBrix

🚴‍ We’ve been in contact with Sustrans who ‘run’ the national cycle network. The intention is we’ll cycle on a lot of their traffic free/quiet roads.

🚴‍ I’ve been putting in many hard miles on an indoor trainer this month. It builds up the endurance and gives one the chance to catch up on a few box sets too – “Dirty John” on Netflix is highly recommended.

🚴‍ Corporate sponsors, supporters and partners now include: BRE Group, Marshalls, KitBrix, Smarter Technologies and Sustain Worldwide Thank you. Get in touch to find out how your business can join them.

🚴‍ Lastly, for donations, the JustGiving page is live – please feel free to use it and circulate it to colleagues and friends.

Please get in touch if you want to get involved, cycle, support, donate, sponsor or know someone who you think might.

To recap, the ride is to support the rehabilitation of survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice.

#RideForFreedom2019 is the 10-day charity cycle ride across England and Wales (Cardiff) which takes place from 7-18 October 2019.

🚴‍♂️ The JustGiving page is live – please feel free to circulate it to colleagues etc https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/RideForFreedom

🚴‍♂️ Our draft plan can be downloaded as a PDF.

🚴‍♂️ Unseen have confirmed they’ve secured permission to fundraise in the City of London on 18 October – that’s Anti-Slavery Day and the day the Tour concludes in London.

🚴‍♂️ The Tour route is taking shape: week 1 will be from Watford to Manchester; week 2 Bristol to London. The intermediary cities we will pass through are to be confirmed – please get in touch ASAP if you’d like to arrange for the Tour to stop at your offices/site for a photo (and press tbc) opportunity.

🚴‍♂️ Lola, Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE is ascertaining the logistics of receiving the Tour as it arrives in Westminster, Central London on 18 October. Thanks, Lola.

🚴‍♂️ Miles Watkins MD of Tufeco aims to cycle one or more of the stages – good on you, Miles, you won’t regret it not even the hills!

🚴‍♂️ Several Unseen team members plan to join the Bristol to Cardiff stage – thanks, Clare, for rallying your colleagues.

🚴‍♂️ Premier Inn / Whitbread have provided a discounted accommodation/food rate (~£900) for the 9 overnight stays required. We need to underwrite this cost so pls get in touch if you can sponsor – see the attached doc too for the corporate sponsorship packages.

🚴‍♂️ And my training is progressing well – a couple of 70km rides under the belt in the February sunshine, and more (many more) planned.

Please get in touch if you want to get involved, cycle, support, donate, sponsor or know someone who you think might.

To recap, the ride is to support the rehabilitation of survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice.