Racers swap hot rods for pedal power in charity challenge

A team of racing enthusiasts have formed the ‘John Christie Race Team’ and have organised a number of different fundraising activities.

At its full council meeting last Wednesday evening, Lisburn City Council supported a proposal to donate £500 to these charitable endeavours and to Action Cancer.

Crumlin man John Christie, the National Hot Rod world champion, has assembled a team of eight racing enthusiasts to form a charity cycle team which will cycle over 300 miles to raise money for the charity.

The team set off on Wednesday from Crumlin and will cycle for two days across England from Liverpool to Ipswich.

John and the team met at Lagan Valley Island to promote the cycle challenge, where the Chairman of the Corporate Services Committee, Cllr Pat Catney and Vice-Chairman, Cllr John Palmer wished them well.

In a joint statement, the Lisburn City Councillors said: “This is such a worthy cause and the participants deserve praise for getting up and doing something for such an important cause. The council was delighted to support Action Cancer and wishes all participants good cycling conditions this week.”

The men are not cycling enthusiasts but have taken on the challenge in an effort to raise money for Action Cancer.

John explained: “Action Cancer’s dedicated team of staff and volunteers work across the whole of Northern Ireland helping to save lives and support people affected by cancer.

“They also fund vital research in conjunction with local universities into the treatment and cure of this terrible disease that will benefit the people of the whole of the UK, and indeed worldwide. Cancer is a devastating illness that affects millions of people, it has affected many of our team’s families and friends, and unfortunately there aren’t many people who haven’t been touched in some way by cancer.

“As a team we have decided to do our bit to raise money to help those who are dealing with cancer, and to support prevention of this terrible disease.

“We’re used to driving or watching hot rods, not riding bicycles, so it’s definitely a challenge for us. We’ve started from scratch but training is coming along and we’re starting to increase our miles every week.

“It’s fantastic to see the team come together and everyone to get behind the campaign for Action Cancer. We are now looking for the public to support us with donations or sponsorship.”

Donations can also be made at: www.justgiving.com/962.

For additional information a member of the team can be contacted on Tel: 07834 278596.