Bike to Wolves raises £46,000 and counting!
Another season and another mammoth Bike To event saw 33 Palace fans cycle 160 miles from Selhurst Park to the Molineux, raising £46,000, and taking all three points with them on the coach home, thanks to goals from Olise, Mateta, and Eze.
Our fourth ‘Bike To’ event was a success in more ways than one last weekend after 33 cyclists crossed the finish line on a sunny afternoon in Wolverhampton, having raised £46,000 for our programmes that support young south Londoners with their mental and physical health, their career prospects and through mentoring.
The riders, ranging from 16 to 72 years of age, began their journey in the regular fashion from Selhurst Park early on the Friday before the Saturday 3 pm kick-off. They weaved their way out of Croydon and found themselves stopping off for lunch in the Oxfordshire countryside, bagging themselves their 60 miles.
1,2,3 GO! The Bike to Wolves riders setting off from Selhurst Park early on Friday morning
50 or so miles later, the riders reached the hotel in Warwickshire to stop off for rest, food, and refreshments. Tired, but in good spirits, riders then heard from former Palace Captain and Wolverhampton player Geoff Thomas MBE about his time at Palace, who he’d want from the current squad in his team when he was playing, and his fundraising efforts to raise money for Cure Leukemia, after being diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia (a form of blood cancer) in 2003. Thomas was given just three months to live, but after a stem cell transplant from his sister Kay, he entered remission from the disease in early 2005.
Geoff spoke movingly about how since then, he has dedicated himself to raising funds to help other blood cancer patients. He’s cycled the Tour de France on seven separate occasions and has raised over £3 million for Cure Leukemia since 2005.
Former Palace Captain Geoff Thomas MBE joined riders on the first evening for a Q&A
The same evening, riders also heard from our very own Sarah Hoddy, our Targeted Intervention Manager who, alongside her team, run mentoring sessions with young people who are facing a variety of challenges. It can be easy to forget when cycling 160 miles through hills and hot weather why you’re doing it. But this reminder from Sarah of how the money raised can help, turned out to be a huge encouragement for those tired legs the following morning.
If you want to hear more about some of the work she spoke about on the night, head here to hear the story of a young participant called Ted who was supported by the team after struggles with his mental health.
All smiles as the riders approached the Molineux finish line
Tim, one of the riders told us:
“Thanks to everyone in the Palace for Life Foundation team, WMP team, and ride leaders for supporting us in reaching Molineux & raising funds to support young people through their challenges. Geoff Thomas put it very well last night when he said the support teams are the real heroes “we just ride our bikes”.
Well done Palace today too crowning our day with another cracking win!”
Palace DJ Jay Knox joined us for his second Bike To challenge after taking on Villa last year
After a night of well-earned rest, the riders set off at 7:30 am to complete the remaining 49 miles to the Molineux finish line. A bit of bike maintenance here and there and that was it, the riders arrived in the backdrop of the Molineux stadium, cheered over the finish line a couple of hours before kick-off – enough time to get themselves some food and revel in their achievement.
Bobby Webbe, Senior Fundraising Coordinator at Palace for Life has organised the last two Bike To challenges was swayed to take on the ride himself this year, he said:
“Bike to Wolves was an incredible two days full of laughs, hard cycling & beautiful weather, topped off by a 3-1 Palace win!
As well as organising the event alongside Emma, I was persuaded by our loyal group of ‘Bike to’ cyclists to take part in the ride itself, and it was the best decision I’ve ever made! The riders really welcomed me into the Palace Peleton and the special camaraderie between the whole group made any difficult hills or miles that bit easier.
We’re delighted to have once again broken last year’s fundraising record with over £46,000 raised! – Thank you to all of our riders and every single person that donated. We’re already counting down to the fixture release for 2025!”
Geoff Thomas surprised riders at the finish line
Some might argue the best was yet to come as another stand-out performance from Palace rounded off the weekend in perfect fashion with three goals and three more points, securing their record for goals scored in the Premier League.
REGISTER YOUR INTEREST FOR NEXT YEAR’S BIKE TO
If you missed out on this year’s ride, head here to register your interest for next year’s ride*
*this will be subject to the Premier League’s 2024/25 season fixtures
DONATE OR FIND OUT MORE
Click here to support our riders with a donation to our community programmes, or for more information on our fundraising events head here, or email Emma.