Why 'Hilly' is riding the Lexus Great British Bike Ride

Since I retired from rugby in 2008 I have continued working with Saracens and, where possible, I have been seeking opportunities to give back to the game.  I was delighted, therefore, to be asked to help with the Great British Bike Ride in September and am really looking forward to the ride from Lands End to Twickenham. The Ride is raising much needed funds for Help for Heroes, The RFU Injured Players Foundation and the RPA Benevolent Fund and aims to raise £1.5 Million over the next five years.

I was looking for a new challenge after kayaking in Norway last summer with Saracens and the GBBR seemed perfect. The hard work of training for such a challenge has begun and I’ve already shifted about a stone in weight! Needless to say, there are a lot more hard miles ahead!

The charities that GBBR are supporting are fantastic causes and I truly believe in the work that they do. I was lucky enough to have a long and successful career but I also had my fair share of injuries over the years, with various problems with my back, neck, nose, shoulder and groin, not to mention the significant problems I have had with my knee. I’ve had a total knee replacement this year. That’s not a reconstruction, but a whole replacement.  Usually these operations are done at about the age of 60, not at the age of 36!  The new knee has a life expectancy of 10-15 years so I won’t be doing any running on it but, fortunately, cycling is fine as it keeps the majority of my weight off the knee.  Personally, I feel that getting on a bike for four days of cycling is the least we can do to help these fantastic charities that do so much for both our armed services and for our sports men and women. I’m looking forward to doing my bit.

I’m hoping to encourage other riders to share the experience of the GBBR and hopefully there will be around 200 riders doing all four days and another 100 riders for each of the daily stages. The tented villages for the overnight stops at Tavistock, Yeovil and Winchester are all at well known rugby clubs and will, I’m sure, be offering traditional hospitality for those with the energy left at the end of a hard days ride! The finale of the event will be at Twickenham on September 4th, the day of the London Double Header matches, which are getting bigger and bigger each year so we anticipate a crowd of over 70,000 to cheer us in.

Please join me on the ride if you can, or if not, you can support the charities by sponsoring me for my ride by clicking on the link to our ‘Virgin Money’ giving page. For those that are competing I look forward to meeting and riding with you.

Richard Hill MBE