For 19 days in June, Gary Shirley, a 59-year-old former soldier, took on a personal challenge of cycling over 1000 miles from Lands End to John O'Groats, totally self-supported, with just a one-man tent & equipment, to raise money for The Veterans Foundation.
There is no real story there; around 4000 people do it every year, but he had more than his anticipated problems. This included coming off his bike three times due to mechanical failure and potholes, bad weather, poor directions, narrowly being missed by a lorry that failed to see him at a junction, as well as being a significant witness to a traffic accident caused by a car that narrowly missed him before driving into two stationary vehicles. Several days later, he was then hit by a car in the Highlands!
He watched as his only pair of reading glasses were run over by a car on the English/Scottish border, and on some days was on the road for up to 14 hours to reach the next campsite whilst dealing with the notorious Scottish midges.
But the real story is the humanity discovered on his journey. This included:
- A waitress (Amelia Macmamara – The Cornish Italian) in Truro giving him her tips to put towards his charity.
- A café owner opened his premises (The Watering Hole, Mortimers Cross) on a day it was closed to cook him breakfast.
- The 'By The Wood' campsite (Longdon near Shrewsbury) donated the pitch fee to his charity.
- He's had a free coffee at Freshers Café in Ambleside.
- On a campsite in Dalston, the family next to him gave him an evening meal.
- In Glasgow, he lost his wallet; that's when he hit his real time of need.
He was in the middle of nowhere, with another week of travel ahead, with no money, no bank cards and no ID, just a tin of tuna and a few peanuts! His partner posted on Facebook, which resulted in a huge outpouring of concern and support. One Freemason contacted another Freemason, who in turn contacted his cousin in Scotland. She and her husband then drove a 190-mile round trip to locate Gary in a remote car park to bring him sandwiches, drinks and cash for his onward journey. He didn't know them, but they were willing to go out of their way to help a man in need.
Since then, the only store at Loch Ness re-opened in the evening to sell him a couple of beers, and a complete stranger offered to lend him money in Inverness upon hearing his tale. Other friends have paid for accommodation to allow Gary a proper rest for the night, and a Scottish postmistress in Fareham personally called the postmaster in Lairg to ask him to approve a money gram requested by another Freemason to allow Gary to collect another injection of much-needed cash to continue his quest.
He arrived at John O'Groats 19 days after leaving Lands End and two days later made the 18-hour train journey back home to Lee on Solent, in Hampshire. He recorded his story on Facebook, inspiring so many that he overcame so many obstacles and had the grit and determination to continue when many may have given up.
In today's world of bad news, politics and struggles, it's nice to know there are still some people out there willing to help someone in need and that someone in need is determined to overcome adversity in the name of charity. To date, Gary has raised over £8500 for The Veterans Foundation.
If anyone would like to make a donation, please do so here.
