Encirc charity cyclists go the extra mile for Alzheimer’s Society

Two keen cyclists showed some real bottle by taking on a 175-mile charity ride between two wine and drinks filling halls in Bristol and Cheshire.

Mike Kent and Janos Cunliffe, both work for UK glass-making and bottling giant Encirc. They took off from their base at ‘The Park’ filling hall in Avonmouth Bristol on Friday to cycle to their sister plant in Elton, Cheshire in aid of the Alzheimer’s Society.

The challenge day marked a key anniversary for Packaging Technologist, Mike, marking 20 years in his career at Encirc’s Bristol base ‘The Park’.

Undaunted by the 175 mile trip, the duo set off on Friday, June 21 and completed the trip in an amazing 11 hours and 24 minutes on Saturday.

Speaking on behalf of the duo, Mike said preparation was key to their success: “Having undertaken the pre-ride preparation which included hours of training, the actual event went very well. We were fortunate not to have any mechanical issues and the weather was kind to us with light winds and no rain.”

That said, the lengthy cycle was not without its challenges with Mike highlighting a shallow, three per cent incline that went on for about for about four miles as one of the toughest parts of the bike ride. Indeed, they climbed an impressive 6,525 feet during the 175 miles and burned well over 6,000 calories each.

Understandably, reaching the finish line brought a great sense of achievement for Mike and Janos (who works as a Product Development Manager) with no shortage of emotion. Having set a target of £500 the boys have been overwhelmed by the response and the total now stands at £1,690.

Mike admitted: “To be honest, it was emotional and humbling to have raised so much money for the charity. We were very touched to have received such a great send off from The Park and then it was great to see the team out to meet us at Elton on Saturday. It meant a lot.”

Mike added: “There are so many people we would like to thank. Not least our wives, Jane and Tabitha, who were our invaluable support team and followed us in the car. Zoe Tonking for helping the internal communications during the event, Louise Reeves and Paul Sime for agreeing for Encirc’s support and Cameron for updating on the journey on the social media sites. All in all, it was a great team effort and a really rewarding experience.”

If you want to donate to Mike and Janos’s gofundme click here https://gofund.me/1a919235