Scots ‘Coast Rode’ Bikers in 3500 mile trek

A group of biker friends from Scotland are set to once again underline the generosity of bikers everywhere by embarking on a 3500 mile ride around Britain to raise money for Macmillan and Marie Curie cancer care. The plan is brain child of David O’Rourke, who sadly lost his father to the illness one year ago. A website, coastrode.co.uk has been set up to allow people to follow the journey and make donations.

Other team members include Edinburgh Council worker, Chris Smith and PR consultant Martin Allen from Falkirk, who will be supporting David every inch of the way. The guys will begin their tour on Saturday 2nd August at South Queensferry in Edinburgh with the Forth Bridge providing a stunning back drop. >From there, the team will head anti-clockwise around Britain using the coastal roads, the hope is to cover around 300 miles each day.

Organiser David O’Rourke explained the reason for the trip:

“On 6th June 2007 my son Hayden was born. A few days later my dad, John, fell ill. At first it was diagnosed as a virus much like shingles and so my parents kept away from their first grandchild for fear of passing it on. He was admitted to hospital on Thursday 2nd August. The following Monday it was confirmed that Dad had a tumour on his lungs which was pressing on his spine. By the Wednesday he was given six weeks to live. He died that Saturday, 11th August.

“He had such little time with his grandson, whom he clearly adored. This is why we want to raise money for the great work that Macmillan Cancer Support and Marie Curie Cancer care do - to help cancer sufferers like my dad spend quality time with their families. Whilst we are going on a fantastic journey, we won't forget the reason why we are clocking up 300 miles a day. I hope dad will be watching over us as we climb through the Highlands, cross the borders, take in spectacular scenery and meet many people along the way.”

Planning for the event has been underway for sometime and support from several companies has already been promised. Aprilia and Yamaha have donated bikes to allow the team to complete the trip while raising as much as possible. Local Yamaha dealer Alan Duffus has also chipped in with servicing and tyres for the 3rd bike, a Yamaha FJR1300. Scotland’s Vita Mobile (vitamobile.com) has generously given £2000 to help with the trip costs.

Mark Hay, Managing Director of Vita Mobile said:

“When David told me what he was planning I had no hesitation in offering our support. Cancer is an illness that doesn’t just affect the sufferer but also impacts on the friends and family of that person as they do their best to support their friend or relative.

“For this reason almost everyone knows someone affected, in whatever way, by this illness making it easy to understand David’s reasons for this trip. I hope everyone the team meets will be as moved as I was by the story and offer as much support as possible.”

Starcom1 have chipped in with some intercoms for the guys and Little Angel Design has crafted a website for free. The team has become the first in the country to get use of first class helmets from Akuma of the US and luggage has been provided by Phoenix distribution who have provided three Kappa Tote bags to the guys.

A full list of locations/way points for the trip is available on coastrode.co.uk and you can also add the Coast Rode team as a friend on Myspace (myspace.com/coastrode). Donations can also be made through the website and a blog will cover the adventure.