Charity challenge had me in tears (From Worcester News)

Charity challenge had me in tears

7:40am Wednesday 14th December 2011 in Biz By Mike Pryce

A WORCESTER property expert proved she was hot stuff when she was among only a quarter in her group to complete a charity cycling challenge through the blazing sun of equatorial Africa.

Charlotte Fullard, chartered surveyor with Halls Commercial, hadn’t ridden a bike for years but was one of just a few people out of a group of 63 to complete the whole of the Women v Cancer cycling event.

The challenge saw Ms Fullard push herself to the limit as she rode 400 kilometres across the Kenyan landscape to raise funds for victims of breast, cervical and ovarian cancer.

The five-day event was organised by Action for Charity and accompanying Ms Fullard were hundreds of women including celebrities such as Aggie MacKenzie of How Clean Is Your House? fame and Dawn Porter, the writer and television presenter.

The commercial property specialist, who lives and works in Worcester, said: “The whole experience was amazing. I met so many different women from all over the country who each had their own reasons for taking part.

When I crossed the finishing line at Kisumu I couldn’t actually believe I had done it, especially the Gold Hill challenge, which was more like a mountain climb. I was brought to tears when the scale of my achievement actually dawned on me.”

With support from friends and colleagues at Halls Commercial and members of the Worcester business community, Ms Fullard raised a total of £5,280.

The collective total for all five groups taking part in the challenge will be more than £1.6 million. All proceeds will be split equally between Breast Cancer Care, Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust, and Ovarian Cancer Action. Some funds will also go to the Faraja Project, a cancer charity in Kenya.