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MANCHESTER TO LIVERPOOL BIKE RIDE
THE leading
charity Bowel Cancer UK has teamed up with events organiser Bike
Events to host a sponsored bike ride between Manchester and
Liverpool.
Taking place on Saturday 10th June 2007, it is the charity’s main
cycling event in the north of England this summer and one of three
cycling fundraisers the charity is hosting this year. Bowel Cancer
UK hopes that public support for the event will bolster its work to
help those affected by bowel cancer and raise awareness of the
disease.
The event is a long-distance challenge which is perfect for summer
cycling, with a route that takes a mostly traffic-free path: it
starts at Salford Quays, progresses through part of the Manchester
Ship Canal, and finally reaches Liverpool via the famous Penny Lane.
The bike ride, which is being held in association with Bike Week (16
June 2007 until 24 June 2007 –
see
www.bikeweek.org.uk), starts
between 8.00 and 10.00 a.m. All that is required to join the event
is a small administration fee.
There are a number of advantages to registering beforehand, so we
encourage participants to do this
where they can. The benefits include receiving an information pack,
which gives handy hints on obtaining sponsorship and help with
setting up a ‘Just Giving’ site. Also, on the day
itself participants will be able to go straight to the Start banner
and begin the route. To register and to obtain more information
visit their website.
However, it is also possible to join the ride on the day as the
registration process is very straightforward, and sponsorship can of
course be obtained afterwards.
Bowel Cancer UK would like as many people as possible take part in
the Manchester to Liverpool Bike Ride so that we can continue our
vital work in combating the second most common cause of cancer death
in the UK.
Damian Witherington, of Moston, Manchester, explains his reasons for
wanting to take part:- “My
father died of bowel cancer some years ago, so I am doing it in his
memory. Also, I’ve just recently gone through a quadruple heart
by-pass procedure, and while I’ve been recuperating, the husband of
one of my wife’s nieces died of a very aggressive form of cancer, so
I’m doing it in his memory as well.
As part of my fitness regime I have been going out with friends on
my mountain bike. One of these friends, Dennis, suggested that we do
this ride, and I agreed as I will also be building up my fitness
whilst supporting a good cause.”
Jock Wright, Events Fundraiser at Bowel Cancer UK, says:-
“Taking part in sponsored events such as the Manchester to Liverpool
Bike Ride is a marvellous way to fulfil a personal challenge whilst
helping an important cause. Through the support of individual
fundraisers we can continue to help more people to overcome the
disease.” |
New
era for space exploration as 14 space agencies take historic step
IN an
unprecedented move, 14 of the world's leading space agencies on 31
May 2007 revealed their agreed vision for globally co-ordinated
space exploration to the Moon, Mars and beyond.
Following months of intensive discussions, they published their
common ideas for space exploration; "The Global Exploration
Strategy" and "The Framework for Co-ordination".
The document outlines the rationale for society to explore space,
defines the current focus and process of space exploration, the
current interest in returning to the Moon and exploring Mars, and
proposes a framework for the future co-ordination of global space
exploration.
Welcoming the publication of the document, Science and Innovation
Minister Malcolm Wicks said:- "This document marks the start
of a new era of space exploration. Since the launch of Sputnik in
1957, we have learnt much about how to explore space and have
experienced the benefits of scientific discoveries in our everyday
lives. Innovations such as exploiting space for global
communications, weather forecasting and helping emergency services
have all flowed from the first half-century of space exploration.
During this century we are sure to see some fantastic voyages of
discovery as robots and humans venture further into our Solar
System. What they learn will excite and inspire new generations to
get involved in science and create new technology that could benefit
the whole economy.
The Framework for Co-ordination sets out a common vision for a new
era of international collaboration. I welcome the fact that the UK
can use this to inform our national plans while joining together in
a truly global endeavour. "
British National Space Centre - which co-ordinates UK civil space
activities and represents the UK at the European Space Agency - was
fully involved in shaping this document. Following its publication,
it is expected that a voluntary, non-binding forum (the
International Co-ordination Mechanism) will now be established so
that all 14 nations can share their plans for space exploration, and
collaborate to strengthen both individual projects and the
collective effort.
This is an exciting time for UK space exploration:-
* The UK was heavily involved in the recent and highly successful
SMART-1 mission to the Moon;
* The UK is building cutting edge technology to survey the
geochemistry of the Moon aboard the Indian Chandrayaan-1 mission
which is due for blast off in 2008;
* It is also the second largest contributor to the European Space
Agency's (ESA) Aurora space exploration programme;
* UK industry has recently started work on the BepiColombo mission
to Mercury, a joint European/Japanese mission to be launched in
2013.
The UK space sector is worth £4.8 billion per annum, supports 70,000
jobs and makes an overall contribution to UK GDP of almost £7
billion per annum.. |
