Swansea Life
Fly to Rome…
now cycle home
Fourteen local men, many from Swansea’s “This will be a very physically demanding ride.
business community, will attempt a remarkable What you don’t see is the training each rider has
cycling challenge in September in aid of Maggie’s been putting in before going. That takes a lot of
Happy
Cancer Caring Centres. Organised by Richard effort and commitment. But you get
Smith, owner of Action out what you put in. The fi tter you
Bikes, and Mike Evans, are, the more you will enjoy it.” Birthday!
owner of A&M Installations,
the riders will take 10 days
He adds that another challenge in its
Some of Swansea’s fi
nest born in September
to cycle 1,300 miles from
own right has been organising the
Rome to Swansea in aid of
logistics behind getting 14 cyclists
Professor Clive Granger
the charity.
from Rome to home in Swansea
including fl ights, accommodation,
Born September 4,
1934
The riders will fl y to Rome equipment and supplies.
on Wednesday September
Swansea born economist Clive Granger collected
23 and return to a welcome
The team has completed many
the Nobel Prize f
or Economics in 2003 and he was
party in Morgans Hotel on
fund-raising exercises in the run knighted in 2004.
He is credited with fundamental
Friday October 2. They hope
up to the event. These included
discoveries in the anal
ysis of time series da
to raise more than £55,000
a charity dinner at Mamma Mia
ta,
for Maggie’s through the
in Swansea, where they sold
work which fundamentall
y changed the wa
y
‘Rome to Home’ challenge.
all 140 seats. A gala dinner
economists anal
yse fi nancial and macroeconomic
Each rider has personally
will take place on Saturday
data. His father,
Edward, worked a
t the Chivers
raised £3,500 to participate.
September 19 at the Brangwyn Hall for Jam and Marmalade factor
y.
440 people. Some tickets for that event are still
This will be the 15th year in a row that Richard available at £40 each. Catherine Zeta Jones
Smith has completed a long cycle ride in aid
Born September 25 1969
of charity. He has cycled around places such
Vicki Jones, community fundraiser for Maggie’s
as France and Ireland in aid of charities including
covering South West Wales, says the charity is
MacMillan Cancer Support, often on his own. In the
extremely grateful for the efforts of the cyclists.
Swansea’s much loved and most famous export
past three years, however, he has worked with Mike
“These guys will make such a difference to our
began acting at an earl
y age playing the lead in
Evans to organise more participants. They are also
appeal,” she says. “There are also many other
production of Annie a
t Swansea’s Grand
Theatre.
adopting Maggie’s as their permanent charity.
people supporting this effort we owe thanks to. Her fi rst major role came in the 1996 action
They will help us build a new centre for Swansea,
fi lm Phantom and she earned a Golden Globe
The 1,300 mile trip back from Rome will be as well as keep it running in the future.”
the longest and toughest challenge they have
nomination for her perf
ormance in Traf
fi c. In 2002,
attempted. It will mean completing 130 miles
Maggie’s is in the process of raising £1.5 million
she won an Academ
y Award for best supporting
per day. Riders will be able to take some breaks
to build a new centre in the grounds of Singleton actress for her role in the musical Chica
go. Her
thanks to a support car provided by Swansea
Hospital. The Maggie’s head offi ce in Scotland
career continues to go from strength to strength.
Audi. But Richard stresses that every rider will
has also nominated Richard and Mike for the
have to be doing close to 100 miles a day.
Pride of Britain awards.
Laura Ashley
“With some of the other challenges, we have
In addition to Richard Smith and Mike Evans,
Born September 7,
1925
fl own somewhere, cycled and then fl own home,”
the other 12 cyclists are: Sunny Bamra, Andrew
says Richard. “This time, we thought why fl y
Coates, Spencer Parker, Andrew Williams, Paul
Born in Dowlais,
Merthyr Tydfi l, Laura became
home when we could cycle. We were knocking
Avo, Simon Parfi tt, Jonathan Shepherd, Chris
a household name on the strength of her work
around ideas and the name Rome to Home had a
Kiley, Gerome DeGea, Tim Williams, James Taylor as a designer and manufacturer of a range of
certain ring to it.
and Roger Davies.
colourful fabrics f
or clothes and home furnishings.
She died in 1985 and is buried in
Carno, Powys. The Laura
Ashley
Foundation is now based in
Llangoed Hall near Brecon.
8 swansealife September 2009
FrontofBook_Sept.indd 8 24/08/2009 12:11:46
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