“The freedom of being on three wheels is great"

Sunday 12 September 2021

An islander with mobility problems has set himself the challenge of hand-cycling the distance of the London Marathon to raise money to help others with disabilities.

Nick Ozouf has Vitamin D-resistant rickets, which leads to weaker and softer bones, but still leads an active life, as a keen cyclist.

Since it first opened in October, Nick has been using Jersey Sport’s ‘Cycle Without Limits Centre’ at Les Quennevais.

Valuing the support it has provided, and unfortunately unable to take part in the Virtual London Marathon as wheels are not allowed in the event, he decided to arrange a fundraiser as a way of giving back, as well as generating funds for Acorn.

As a result, he decided to hand-cycle 28 laps around the Les Quennevais track – the distance of the London Marathon.

“The track is just under a mile long, so it will take about 28 laps to cover 26 miles 385 yards, which is the marathon distance. That doesn’t sound much on a normal bicycle, but on a hand-cycle, particularly the one I use, it’ll be hard work! So far, the most I have cycled is 12 laps and I average about 4.5 miles per hour,” he explained.

Pictured: "The freedom of being on three wheels is great. I enjoy it, but it's very hard work."

“The Cycle Without Limits recumbent hand-cycle is an excellent piece of kit which allows me to exercise and ride a bike - something I would not otherwise be able to do if it wasn’t for the inclusive cycling centre and the support received from the excellent Cycle Coaches there.

“The freedom of being on three wheels is great. I enjoy it, but it’s very hard work. You could compare the movement on this hand-cycle to rowing a boat through heavy waters.”

Nick hopes to raise £1,000 from his challenge, and is already more than halfway there.

He said he had chosen to support the Cycle Without Limits Centre to help them “support more people who wouldn’t otherwise be able to cycle, to experience and enjoy the freedom of cycling”, while Acorn was selected “because they offer great job and training opportunities to people who have a disability or long-term health condition.”

However, he added: “…To be honest, this challenge is also for me. Due to my physical disability, I’ll never be able to walk, let alone run 26 miles 385 yards - so to complete this challenge is the closest that I’ll get.”

Islanders are invited to support Nick during his challenge at Les Quennevais, which will start at 10:00 on 25 September.

CLICK HERE to donate.