Christmas is a time of giving, so we thought we’d give people a few last-minute ideas. Whatever your faith – or lack of, we can all connect with the idea that Christmas highlights what we’re fortunate to have and what others lack. With that in mind, here are our suggestions.
Pay forward a meal at The Long Table in Cirencester or Brimscombe. This helps provide a meal to someone who can’t afford it at either of these pay-as-you-can restaurants. Every entry to our events does just this, and this year we donated over £900 to The Long Table.
Donate an unwanted bike or spare parts to The Bike Drop in Cirencester or Brimscombe. Second-hand bikes are brought back to life by The Bike Drop, providing affordable and reliable bikes for the local community, as well as creating employment. Riders at WWC24 and MOTM24 both generously donated spare parts to support this.
Support The Bike Project with a donation. They refurbish second-hand bikes and donate them to refugees and people seeking asylum in the UK, providing them with a vital means of transport. Previously, we supported a similar project for Ukrainian refugees and have seen the liberating potential of two wheels. We’ve also had a couple of The Bike Project team ride our events this year.
Gift Cycling UK membership to someone. Cycling UK do brilliant work promoting all forms of cycling, acting as an advocacy group while also developing their own fantastic mixed-surface routes. Their membership handily includes third-party liability insurance, which you’ll need for our events. And unlike some other options, they aren’t sponsored by a petrochemical giant.
Finally, sometimes the only gift required is time. With the Ultra Distance Scholarship taking a break in 2025 to regroup, it seems the right time to highlight that their phenomenal work relies on a lot of graft from volunteers. If you think you could help, consider offering the gift of your time to them (or any other good cause).
And, of course, while all of the above are exceptionally worthy causes, you could also choose to buy wheels from Zolla Wheels or a bike from Windover, who are both returning to support our events in 2025…
