The photo is of my big brother and me taken in about 1971. I was about 14 and Bob 19, My dad’s immaculate Morris 1100 in the background and Bob and me leaning on his Morris Minor (I would buy it off him for £150 about six years later). I always copied the things Bob did (I think it's an irritating younger brother thing). He was and still is my hero. Always quiet with sound words of advice and encouragement. And so it was that Bob phoned me a few years ago to tell me that he had Parkinson's Disease. Him in his calm matter-of-fact way, me pretty rubbish and having to put the phone down until I could call him back without bursting into tears. A few years on, and apart from a few set-backs, Bob has managed well, still the same calm reflective big brother. He meets up regularly with a local young-onset Parkinson's group and a while ago he wrote a little book to help other people cope in the early years.
My target is to try and raise £10,000 through Just Giving which goes to Parkinson's UK. We have also raised about £1000 in cash which has gone to the Bristol branch of Parkinson's UK.
Parkinson's UK is the leading advice, research and fund-raising group in the UK.
If you would like to sponsor the ride, every bit helps, please go to the justgiving page
for the ride here.