The chair's charity bike ride
Cllr Geof Driscoll has been cycling around all the wards in the district to raise money for local charity Accuro.
Throughout September Geof cycled through every ward in the district and he's asking you to support him by making a donation to Accuro.
Update on the ride
Geof set off from London Road on Monday morning and finished back there on Friday He covered more than 70 miles on an electric hybrid bike kindly loaned by local company Tekmotiv.
He has made various stops along the way including to see the progress of some of the projects awarded funding through the council's .
He is raising money for Accuro's STRIDE project, a six-month life skills programme for young adults aged 19 to 25 with a disability in west Essex. So far he is up to £900.
The route
Here is the route that Geof cycled.
Monday 4 September: Uttlesford District Council Offices Saffron Walden - Littlebury - Littlebury Green - Arkesden - Wicken Bonhunt - Rickling Green - Ugley Green - Elsenham - Stansted Mountfitchet - Birchanger
Tuesday 5 September: Birchanger - Great Hallingbury - Takeley - Hatfield Broad Oak - Hatfield Heath - White Roding - Leaden Roding - High Easter
Wednesday 6 September: High Easter - Barnston - Dunmow - Stebbing
Thursday 7 September: Stebbing - Felsted - Flitch Green - Little Dunmow - Dunmow (Church End) - Great Easton - Thaxted
Friday 8 September: Thaxted - Wimbish Green - Radwinter - Sewards End - Saffron Walden
Follow the ride day by day
You can see where Geof cycled each day on a map. He also stopped at a number of community projects and events along the way.
Day 1 - Monday 4 September
Today Geof rode from Saffron Walden to Birchanger.
Start: Saffron Walden Uttlesford District Council Offices at 9am
Stopping at: Littlebury Energy Project at 10am
Update: Geof has got leaving the Council Offices at 9am. You can watch a video of Geof's departure on Facebook.
Distance: 30.3km/18.83 miles
See where Geof will be going on day 1 on an Ordnance Survey route map
Day 2 - Tuesday 5 September
Today Geof rode from Birchanger to High Easter.
Start: Birchanger at 9am
Stopping at: Accuro at 9:30am and Takeley Community Hub at 11:30am
Distance: 28km/17.4 miles
See where Geof will be going on day 2 on an Ordnance Survey route map
Day 3 - Wednesday 6 September
Today Geof rode from High Easter to Stebbing
Start: High Easter Cricket Ground at 9am
Update: A midweek update on Geof's charity ride.
It is warm out there, but not normally being a cyclist the pace is slow and I am seeing what Uttlesford is really like, including the chocolate box villages, wonderful undulating countryside (big hills) and wildlife.
Today was a short relocation ride of around eight miles after a visit to a pre-school in High Easter arranged by Neil Reeve, who sits on the Parish Council, moving on to Stebbing. I would like to thank Neil and other members, Councillors and Officers of UDC for arranging my visits this week and those of you who I have met and chatted with around the District, you can pick up on the fine points and see the photos on the Uttlesford Facebook page thanks to Dan Barden and his team.
Your gratefully received donations have reached £410.00 this is 82% of the target figure hoped for, please feel free to add to that through my Just Giving page as we are not required to stop when we reach that figure.
Geof
Distance: 13km/8.1 miles
See where Geof will be going on day 3 on an Ordnance Survey route map
Day 4 -Thursday 7 September
Today Geof rode from Stebbing to Thaxted
Start: Stebbing at 9am
Stopping at: Mill Lane Playing Field - Nature and Biodiversity Project at 9:30am and the Neighbourhood Roadshows 2024 in Felsted at 11am
Distance: 23.6km/14.7 miles
See where Geof will be going on day 4 on an Ordnance Survey route map
Day 5 - Friday 8 September
Today Geof rode from Thaxted to Saffron Walden
Start: Thaxted Guildhall at 9am
Stopping at: -
Distance: 18.9KM/11.7 miles
See where Geof will be going on day 5 on an Ordnance Survey route map
About Accuro
Accuro is a small charity making a big difference in west Essex. They support local children, young people and adults with disabilities by providing services that are fun, safe and inclusive.
Geof has been raising funds for Accuro's STRIDE programme.
STRIDE stands for 'Skills Togetherness Relationships Independence Diversity Equal-Opportunities' and is a 6 month life skills project for young adults with a learning disability. It covers healthy living, personal care, household tasks, how to keep safe, social and communication skills and much more.
Find out more about Accuro on their website.
Make a donation
We've set up a Just Giving page for donations to Accuro in support of the Chair's bike ride.
Zero carbon communities
Community groups across Uttlesford have been successful in applying for funding to tackle the climate crisis through our Zero Carbon Community Grant Scheme.
On his bike ride Geof visited 2 of the successful projects - Saffron Walden Community energy who have been awarded £34,000.00 towards the next phase of the Littlebury Energy Project decarbonisation plan and the Mill Lane Playing Field Stebbing Nature and Biodiversity Project.
and the other successful schemes around the district.