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Get on your bike and ride through the beautiful east Kent countryside for charity and you could find yourself on a train to Paris.
The KM Charity Team is holding its annual KM Big Bike Ride on Sunday, April 29 – and the most successful individual fundraisers will be in with the chance to win a pair of Eurostar tickets.
Participants can raise sponsor money for any good cause of their choice and those raising £200 or above will go into a draw to bag the prize.
But riders don’t have to raise sponsorship – they can just take part for fun – and can choose from either a 50K or a 100K route, both taking in some of the lovely landscapes that have made Kent famous as the garden of England.
Both routes start and end at Betteshanger Country Park, the 121-hectare park built on the former Betteshanger colliery site just north of Deal.
The shorter route includes pretty countryside and villages around Dover and Deal, then heads north towards Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve, turning east just before the reserve and heading back towards the medieval charms of Sandwich.
The longer route continues north at Stodmarsh, skirting the reserve and following the beautiful Thanet coast through Reculver, Margate, Broadstairs, and Ramsgate before going back through Sandwich.
A launch event for the ride was staged at Betteshanger Park and supported by representatives from charities including East Kent Hospitals Trust, ARRCC, Dover Smart Project, Kent Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance, Heart of Kent Hospice, Kent MS Therapy Centre, Changing Minds, Kent Wildlife Rescue Service, and Demelza Hospice Care for Children.
KM Charity Team chief executive Simon Dolby said: “The KM Big Bike Ride is always very popular with sportive riders and leisure cyclists alike.
“It really brings home to you how beautiful and varied the Kent landscape is – you’ll see so many different and delightful views in one day.
“It’s open to anyone 12 or over - although under-18s must be accompanied by an adult - so the whole family can take part and enjoy a day out in the fresh air.”
Riders will have their time measured by electronic chip and an action photo taken during the ride, which they can download for free as a souvenir.
The KM Charity Team organise the KM Big Bike Ride with key partners Vattenfall and Locks of Sandwich Cycles plus support from Benenden Hospital Trust.
For more information or to book your place visit www.kmcharityteam.co.uk/booking and use the discount code KMNEWS18.