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IT boss completes one-day 198-mile challenge for charity

IT boss completes one-day 198-mile challenge for charity

The head of one of the region’s leading specialists in the provision of IT support services has completed a gruelling charity fundraiser which saw him cycle from Ilkeston to Skegness and back on the same day.

Rob Franklin, Managing Director at JPT Solutions, completed the 198-mile challenge to raise funds for Dreamflight, a UK charity which provides children with serious illnesses and disabilities with the chance to create memories that last a lifetime by taking them on holiday to Orlando, Florida.

Dreamflight is a charity close to Rob’s heart, with his son Daniel – who was born without a diaphragm and is subsequently spending the majority of his first three years in hospital – having benefited from the charity in the form of a holiday abroad which would not otherwise have been possible.

Rob is no stranger to endurance challenges, having climbed Mount Snowdon, the highest point in Britain outside of the Scottish Highlands, just the week before.

However, this challenge was 50 miles further – around the equivalent distance of Nottingham to Birmingham – than any cycling challenge Rob had ever undertaken and consisted of intensive training sessions in the run-up to the day.

An added incentive for Rob was that he was forced to curtail the same challenge nine years ago due to a back injury.

Yet this time round Rob – joined on the trip by friend Paul Jones of Integral Financial Planning – braved the wind, rain and storms to complete the challenge in just over 15 hours; raising £1,768 for the charity and smashing the £1,000 target in the process.

Rob said: “After the challenge was complete I felt a mixture of emotions – the main two being elation and exhaustion.

“I knew it was going to be a tough ask but I was determined to succeed for a charity that does fantastic work and makes an incredible difference to young people’s lives.

“I would like to thank Paul for accompanying me on the trip and a special thanks to everyone who supported us before and during the challenge and, of course, everyone who donated – every pound makes a difference.

“We must be gluttons for punishment because I am already planning my next fundraiser for Dreamflight for next year, so to keep an eye out for updates.”


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