Project Recovery Ride: Mental Health- It’s not Madness!

Aims:

• To raise money for mental health services
• To let people know it is not weak to seek out help and that mental illness is beatable.
• To show that to suffer from a mental illness is not a weakness to be judged and discriminated against

So what is Project Recovery Ride (PRR)? Well it is a series of three long distance bicycle rides and smaller fund raising events with which I aim to do three things: raise money to support mental health relief ensuring those in need get the best help they can, to show to the world that to suffer from a mental illness is not a weakness to be judged and discriminated against and finally to prove that mental illness is not forever, it can be overcome and that it is not weak to ask for help . These three rides will in tale circumnavigating the Mediterranean Sea (16,500km), riding the length of that ancient trade route The Silk Road (12,500km) and a 4000km ride across the length of Europe.

Why? Well cycling is my passion and a sport I love however over the past couple of years depression has turned me against it. Now with renewed energy I'm rediscovering the joys of riding. Despite this I no longer have the mentality needed to race so I've been looking to find a new way of enjoying cycling. Another of my passions and something that has helped me through my recovery is travel and adventure. As such it seemed like a good idea to combine them. This isn't just for myself though. No, I want to share this experience with as many others as possible in the hope that a few, even just one or two, people find some help in it.