2025 Oxford to Paris Ride for Life
2025 Oxford to Paris Ride for Life
Over the years our many supporters have taken on all sorts of challenges to help us/OOSO carry on doing what we do best - helping others at a really tough point in their lives.
The things people do for us is quite simply humbling. Jumping out of planes, running back-to-back ultra marathons, completing 18-hour extreme triathlons, 1000+ mile cycle rides, running art fairs, cake stalls, tea party’s, plant sales, darts tournaments, golfing days, dinners and BBQ’s, the list goes on.
The really humbling thing is we don’t ask anyone to do anything for us, people are just incredibly generous and want to help. To this end we are now embarking on our biggest event of the year - and possibly for a decade, a cycle ride from Oxford to Paris (OTP).
Our Trustees Nick, Anne, Liz and Richard are all taking part with 10 seasoned cyclists (mostly clinicians and former patients) have volunteered to take on the challenge. Matt is driving the support vehicle with his brother John
The challenge, is a testing three-day ride starting from the Churchill Hospital on Monday 8th September at 8am, catching the night ferry from Portsmouth to Caen, with two further days cycling into Paris for a suitable celebration! Riders will return the next day via Eurostar whilst the white van men head home with the bikes.
Why we’re going to Paris?
Ten years ago, OOSO supporters completed an epic sponsored ride from John O’Groats to Lands End (JOGLE) raising the best part of £60,000, which has since funded all sorts of equipment for the wards and patient focussed initiatives.
The Trustees felt it fitting that a decade later we could host another high-profile ride in support of our developing plans to keep OOSO firmly on the map, however we don’t aspire to raising nearly as much this time around, partly due of cost of living pressures that everyone’s experiencing, and most importantly our supporters give to us generously already.
Riding to Paris in three days won’t be a picnic but the scale of challenge and determination needed feels achievable, and another special moment for us all to remember.
Costs and expenses
OOSO is funding the cost of the support vehicle and its ferry crossing, but otherwise all participants will pay for their own travel, ferry tickets and cabins, hotel accommodation, meals and return journey.
What will we do with donations?
Given our strong links with the Chruchill Hospital and connections with one of the most prestigious cancer research facilities in the country, we’ve been considering a new “OOSO Fellowship” initiative, whereby young up-and-coming Oxford based researchers can apply for modest financial support from us towards their work, finding better treatments and surgical techniques for oesophageal and stomach cancers. A fellowship will be good for young researchers and good for OOSO, forging closer links with the Oxford based Centre of Excellence for Upper Gi cancer research.
As part of any award, the successful researcher will present their work to our annual forum and provide progress reports throughout their project to be included in our newsletters. Details of the fellowship have yet to be finalised - we’ll keep you informed.
Fundraising
So far we have raised a considerable sum (in excess of £18K from donations and sponsorships) but you wish donate further then the fundraisiung page can be viewed at:
Oxfordshire Oesophageal And Stomach Organisation: Oxford to Paris Cycle Ride
Or by scanning this QR below via your mobile phone:
Off we go
Updates
As the team progress along the challenge we wil be posting some photos below
Day One
Day Two
La Boissiere hill top cafe in the sun
Leaving the mid morning cafe stop
Day Three
10 miles into day 3, steady progress in light rain
