A team of cyclists representing County Durham firm Banks Property has taken on the Tour de Yorkshire course to raise hundreds of pounds for a regional cancer charity.
The ten-strong team took part in the Tour de Yorkshire Sportive, a 50 mile amateur cycle event which follows much of the route of the main event and had a grandstand finish in Leeds city centre a few hours before the professional riders completed their race there.
The team was riding to raise money for North East cancer charity Bright Red, which was chosen by Banks Group staff as their dedicated charity for 2018, and raised more than £400 on the day.
As part of the race, Banks’ graduate development engineer Dean Penfold beat 1,800 rivals to claim the event’s King Of The Mountains title by recording the fastest time up the notorious Black Hill Road on the outskirts of Leeds, which reaches a gradient of up to one in five along its 600m length.
Ride organiser Rob Ormrod also finished in the Sportive’s overall top ten.
Bright Red supports people across the north of England who are dealing with a wide range of blood cancers, such as leukaemias, lymphomas and myelomas.
Rob Ormrod says: “The weather could not have been better and despite a few challenges on the way round, the team stuck together around what’s a really tough course and enjoyed a terrific day.
“Riding past huge crowds to the finish in Leeds city centre was quite incredible, while Dean taking the King Of The Mountains title just made the whole event extra special.
“We had great sponsorship support from our colleagues and contacts before the race, and we’re especially pleased that the team’s efforts have added so much to the money raised so far for Bright Red.”
