Personal trainer James Beeson, 41, has decided to take on the mammoth challenge of cycling nearly 1,000 miles across nine days from the bottom of England to the top of Scotland to raise funds Winston’s Wish.

With a fundraising target that has already raised thousands of pounds for Winston’s Wish, as well as regional charity Simon Says, James is keen to raise awareness and funds for a cause that is close to his heart.

James explains, “I had just turned seven when I lost my dad in a car accident on the way home from his works Christmas party. Just five years later just as I started secondary school, I also lost my mum to cancer. I know from personal experience just how difficult it is to cope with grief, as a young child and especially as you get older.

“I was one of the fortunate ones in that my aunt and uncle took me in but there was no professional support easily available to kids in my situation.

“When I was younger, I was just quiet but as I grew older, I found myself getting more and more angry and found myself in lots of tough circumstances.”

James initially decided to undertake the Ride Across Britain challenge of cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats when a friend asked for his support to train. He says, “I thought that if I’m going to take part in the cycle then I wanted to do it for a charity that was making such a difference.

“Simon Says is a local charity and Winston’s Wish supports grieving kids all over the UK and they continue to support bereaved young people right to the age of 25 which I think is a really critical stage, especially when you’ve suffered bereavement. You’re trying to navigate lots of circumstances. You are expected to be an adult and grow up, but you start questioning everything and struggle to fit into a normal world.”

As well as taking part in an incredible challenge that will see James’s cycle roughly 110 miles each day as he complete the huge 9-day cycle, the occasion will also mark James’ first visit to Scotland! He says, “I’m looking forward to seeing different parts of the countryside. It’s one thing to be driving from place to place but by bike it’s a completely different experience. I’m really looking forward to all the views as I go. The event is really well organised with a proper route and overnights in key location complete with hot food and conveniences.

“It’s also really crucial for headspace too. Running a business and having a family means life is always busy and dealing with your own head can be tough. I’m at peace on my bike, it’s my time to wind down and switch off and allow myself to have that headspace.

“I am pleased to be raising funds to help support a charity that directs gives advice and support to grieving children and young people. I know just how important it is to get help. I still often struggle especially on memorable days or events but have much better systems in place due to years of working on myself with help from loved ones and many different experienced professionals over the years.

Fundraise for Winston’s Wish!

Feel inspired by James’ cycling challenge? Why not join #TeamWinston and take on a fundraising challenge in support of bereaved children and young people.

Run, walk, cycle, swim or even design your own fundraiser and help raise vital funds that help ensure no child grieves alone.

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Ben from the Hunchman Trust shares about their motivation behind raising thousands for Winston’s Wish!

It all started in May 2023 with The Hunchman 500. Me, Charlie and Chester decided to raise money for mental health by organising a unique challenge. The plan was to run 250km from our family home in Surrey to where Dad’s ashes are spread in the Quantocks in Somerset and then cycle 250km back again… all within 7 days! Initially raising funds for Movember, the event gained traction online, and we decided to create The Hunchman Trust to make it more than a one-time event.

Sadly, an injury prevented me from participating myself, but that did allow me to join the support team, including Chester’s sisters and friend, Charlie. The whole week was unforgettable. The sun was shining, there was a lot of pain, a few too many drinks, and everyone had a great time with a big celebration at the end. Due to the success of The Hunchman 500 challenge, we started the process of registering as a grant giving charity. We partner with like-minded charities and organisations to create initiatives and offer grants to support kids who are grieving the loss of a loved one, especially those affected by suicide.

We went on to fundraise specifically for Winston’s Wish by taking on another challenge. Two of my friends from university cycled from London the Paris ‘The Hunchman Way’ (longest way possible), attempting to cover 434km in under 24 hours! They raised £7000 directly for Winston’s Wish.

We founded the Hunchman Trust in November 2023, after securing 3 more close trusted friends as trustees, to support young people grieving the loss of a loved one, and especially those affected by suicide. Our mission is to ensure no one feels left behind, providing support through fundraising events and collaborations with other charities.

Once registered, we were able to set up our grant giving process. This took several months but once approved we were able to make our first grant of £20,000 to Winston’s Wish.

We have more money to grant as well as more fundraising coming up. One of our trustees and close family friend is taking on a double marathon, where 26 people will run two marathons over 2 days at the end of July! We’ve also scheduled our biannual black-tie gala dinner is scheduled for November 2nd at our dad’s old school, featuring a three-course meal and fundraising activities.

The Hunchman Trust, born from a personal loss, is dedicated to supporting young people dealing with grief. Through ambitious physical challenges and community support, we aim to provide the same network of care that helped us cope.

For more information or to let us know about a likeminded cause to support, visit our website www.hunchmantrust.co.uk.

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Russ Brookes has been an incredibly active and long-standing supporter of Winston’s Wish. He’s taken on numerous challenges including multiple marathons, the famously difficult Dragon Ride and even donned an inflatable dinosaur costume as part of his efforts. He now has an epic year ahead of him taking on both the hilly Giant’s Head marathon and London to Paris Cycling challenges. We asked him to tell us more about his motivations in taking on such a wealth of challenges and his fantastic achievements to date.

When did you begin fundraising for Winston’s Wish and what prompted you to start?

I began Fundraising about 10 years ago. It came about from a phase in my life of starting to want to get myself in shape and I’d been feeling a bit listless and lacking direction. My dad (who took his own life when I was 11) had been on my mind quite a lot and I wanted to do something to remember him. Doing something for Winston’s Wish, who helped me and my family so much when I was a boy, felt the logical choice so I signed up to do Land’s End to John O’Groats and really had no idea what I was letting myself in for!

I’m significantly fitter than I was then, so the challenge coupled with the fundraising caught me off guard somewhat! The event was amazing though, challenging but allowed me to see the country and was a great way to make peace with how I’d been feeling at the time. It was the start of learning how good for my mental health exercise and fundraising was and it is something I’ve continued to do.

What challenges have you taken on to date?

Alongside this I’ve done Ride London twice, The Dragon ride, London Marathon, Brighton Marathon and a few others, that I’ve lost track off… I definitely got the fitness bug and love challenging myself.

I was going to take a break, but lockdown happened and watching Tom Moore and the other fundraising going on, I felt I had to do something. So, I did a garden Marathon for the Charity and that remains the most mentally testing Marathon I’ve ever done. This then led to doing the virtual London Marathon in an inflatable dinosaur costume (not my best idea!) My wife, Em and I had suffered two miscarriages and the end of our journey to have a child naturally, so Lockdown was very hard on us. Having the events, coupled with a return to counselling, helped me to keep going and I get as much out of doing the events as the charity does.

Why is 2022 a poignant year for you and you’re fundraising and what do you have planned?

It’s poignant for a number of reasons. We are currently going through Adoption and part of the process is looking at your past and this has brought up me thinking more of my relationship with Dad and his suicide. It’s made me think more of it as a perspective of him as a father and what he must have felt, the pain and the hurt he must have endured to feel we were better off without him. And also, to remember how lucky I was to have an amazing childhood with him and then with Mum and my stepdad later. I know how big a part Winston’s Wish and Counselling have played in that, so continuing to fundraise for was something I wanted to do. It’s a great outlet from the stress and challenges of the adoption process and gives me a motivation to ensure I train!

Coupled with that, In October I turn 41, which is the age Dad was when he passed away. It’s been quite hard getting my head round it, 30 years without him. I miss him a lot right now, wishing I could talk about all I’ve been through or just having a pint and watching the rugby with him. I missed so much and with Adoption it’s stuff I want to do with a child of my own. I’m slowly making peace with where I am in life, of how he must have felt, as I get to have more empathy of how it feels to be a dad, to be an adult and have the responsibilities. I’m learning to live my life for me and not him, although he will always be a massive part of life. He loved rugby and cycling and these both shaped my life. I loved watching the Tour De France with him and so cycling into France feels a great way to mark the occasion and hopefully raise money for Winston’s Wish.

How is your training going so far for London to Paris and Giants Head?

It’s going! I have plans to follow but with adoption it’s been frustrating to not be following things as I’d like. But I’m learning to just roll with that and accept what I can and can’t control. I’ve a good few rides in and building to doing longer back-to-back days. Having my turbo trainer has helped in the colder months too. Running wise I’m getting into running weekly and building up my long runs. I have a half marathon in March in the Forest of Dean and that will be a good gauge of where I am. So, it’s early days but I’m staying motivated and determined to do well on both, hopefully as I get nearer, I’ll be hitting the events in good shape.

What have been your favourite and most difficult challenges that you’ve taken on for Winston’s Wish?

So as part of the fundraising for LEJOG, A friend had an idea for breaking the record for the Longest Game of Rugby ever played (at the time this was 25 hours, it’s significantly longer now!) We had no idea what we were in for, but it was an amazing challenge, but the hardest I’ve done. Unfortunately, although we played for 25 hours, with the injuries we had we didn’t have enough players on each side left for it to be an official record. We also played this a week after I’d finished LEJOG, so I was mentally and physically exhausted after that. I’ve also organised rugby games against the Cherry Pickers (the Ex Gloucester-players) and this has led to me playing rugby at Kingsholm, a childhood dream, against some of my rugby heroes. Captaining a team of my mates against a team Captained by Mike Tindall is one of my best memories and I still have to pinch myself it happened!

We’re so grateful to Russ for his continued support of our work and mission to improve the lives of as many grieving children, young people and families as we can, and look forward to seeing him achieve even more amazing feats in the year ahead.

Feeling inspired?

Follow in Russ’s footsteps by taking on an epic fundraiser of your very own!

You can take of any of our many events or challenges or even host a fundraiser of your choice. Head over to our fundraising page for more ways to get involved in supporting Winston’s Wish.

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