A group of army veterans are to do a poignant 3,000-mile cycle ride … without leaving Huddersfield town centre.
The 20 former soldiers are doing the ride on static cycles in St George’s Square on Saturday, August 3, to raise money for Tommy’s Lounge on nearby Station Street.
They did a similar event last year which brought in £2,000.
The café is thought to be unique in the UK as it was set up primarily as a place for veterans to meet up and talk through their often traumatic experiences. Members of the public are also more than welcome to go there.
The café needs funding so the veterans decided to set up 20 static bikes and will cycle 3,000 miles in around 10 hours to raise money.
Many of the veterans fought in Afghanistan and lost colleagues out there so the event on August 3 is called the Repatriation Ride.
Huddersfield soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice in Afghanistan include Pte Tom Wroe, 18, from Meltham; Cpl Jake Hartley, 20, of New Mill; Pte Anthony Frampton, 20, of Longwood; Pte Daniel Wilford, 21, of Cowlersley and bomb disposal expert Capt Lisa Head, 29, of Almondbury. Lisa served with the 321 Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Squadron, 11 EOD Regiment, and the rest were in The Yorkshire Regiment.
When soldiers lost their lives in Afghanistan a vigil for each one was held at the main army base in Afghanistan, Camp Bastion, and then they were flown to RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire where hearses took them through the nearby market town of Wootton Bassett.
The distance from Camp Bastion to Wootton Bassett is 3,752 miles so after riding 3,000 miles the veterans will finish off with 752 push-ups – one for each mile.
Anyone who is passing is welcome to join in and cycle a few miles.
Each of the bikes used in the marathon will be named after a regiment that served in Afghanistan.
The bikes will be in large tents in St George’s Square and the ride starts at 9am and is due to finish by 4.30pm.
There will also be a memorial board where people can write the names of people they have lost and include a few words about them.
To donate to this fundraising appeal go to https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=8KAPN2YGJ69DG
Tommy’s Lounge was set up by Jennie Thorn, her mum, Sue and Jennie’s partner Mick Riley who served in the army for many years and became a regimental sergeant major.
Read more about Mick at https://huddersfieldhub.co.uk/army-veteran-mick-riley-mbe-talks-about-his-mental-health-battles-and-the-lifeline-that-is-tommys-lounge/
Jennie is a sports therapist who has helped amputees and people with severe injuries learn to have confidence in themselves again and believes Tommy’s Lounge is an ideal place for veterans to meet up and talk, especially if they are finding it challenging to adjust back into civilian life.
Jennie said: “It’s one of a kind, the first of a kind and, hopefully, not the last of its kind. We are open to anyone, not just veterans. We have civilians who come in and are transfixed by the stories some of the veterans tell them about their time serving their country.”
The veterans have also helped to give the place its own unique feel by donating maps, army and RAF uniforms, berets and lots of other military memorabilia for the lounge.
It’s open from 7am to 2pm Tuesday to Friday and from 10am to 3pm on Saturdays so is an ideal spot for early morning commuters to pop in for a drink or cooked breakfast. The café’s speciality is German Bratwurst and Currywurst as many of the veterans served in Germany.
To find out more about Tommy’s Lounge go to the website at https://www.tommyslounge.coffee/ or Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/TommysLoungeHuddersfield?locale=ms_MY
They are also on TikTok at https://www.tiktok.com/@tommyslounge
Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR (https://ah-pr.com/) specialising in press releases, blogging, website content and copywriting.
