Video: The event got underway at 9am this morning (June 30).
A West Bridgford school has organised a 24-hour bike ride to raise money for charities which helped two ‘little heroes’.
Year five pupil George Mosely, 10, had a life-saving heart operation in January while his friend Harry Steel, 10, was diagnosed with type one diabetes in February.
Abbey Road School, West Bridgford, organised the event to raise £200 to be split between charities Heartlink and Diabetes UK, which have supported both boys and their families.
The cycle started at 9am this morning (June 30) and will run through the day and into the night, with pupils, staff and parents all taking part in 20-minute relay slots.
So far £709 has been raised on a crowdfunding page.
But the total is expected to rocket as all pupils have collected money from their families.
George has raised £400 while Harry and his sister Emily have collected £300, their mums said.
Part of the money will also go to the school’s own charity, the Abbey Road School Fund.
Julie Mosley said her son had a “faulty valve” in his heart and underwent seven-and-a-half hour open heart surgery at Glenfield Hospital, in Leicester.
She said Heartlink provided accommodation for the family to stay at the hospital while George remained in intensive care after the operation.
She said: “George has raised more than £400. Because my family know how much he’s been through, it’s touched them and they’ve donated.
“The school also needs money itself. The kids [George and Harry] have gone through so much and the parents have been so supportive and they’ve [the school] treated them like little heroes.”
She added: “If he hadn’t have had the operation he would’ve lost his life eventually. It’s been lifesaving. He would’ve become very poorly and would not have been able to do anything – he’s a really active young man.”
Teacher Helen Dussek, who runs a weekly cycling club at the school, “spent hours and hours planning and preparing it all” and marked out a kilometre-long track on the school field.
Nicola Steel said her son Harry was diagnosed with diabetes in February and Diabetes UK has provided the family with information about his condition.
“It’s been a really good support tool for us since Harry was diagnosed. The work they do to create awareness of both types of diabetes is brilliant,” she said.
Nicola cycled five-kilometres this morning and will return at 2am to cycle another five with her husband and two children.
“I paced myself, it wasn’t that bad. I cycled with some of the five and six years olds. They were just amazing. The coaches here have made an amazing course for the children. It’s not just straight round, twists, turns and bends. It’s like a proper cyclo-cross course.
“I’ve been quite emotional today, especially when we started this morning. I can’t believe all these people have organised it all for something so important for our family.”
Penny Briscoe, director of sport at the British Paralympic Association, led the countdown as the first pupils started cycling this morning.
She told the children: “What you’re doing is not only about you having fun and getting fit but you’re actually giving and doing something really amazing for other people.”
Once the school day finishes pupils and their families will stay or return later as the cycling continues until 9am on Saturday.
Head teacher Lyn Toom told Notts TV: “It’s a brilliant community event where all of the children and parents are on board. There’s hundreds of bikes all over the place and everybody’s joining in, cheering on their friends.
“The two boys at the heart of it are made up and their parents are made up.
“We’ve got a teacher who’s really passionate about sport, her name is Helen Dussek. She runs a weekly cycling club.
“After school, once a week children from year one to year six take part in cyclo-cross on the field. She also runs athletics clubs and is really dedicated to sport.
“She dedicates hours and hours of her own time to take the children on really exciting events. She meets them at weekends and they go riding along the path along the River Trent. She’s just inspirational in terms of sport.
“These two children who we’re raising money for their charities, they both go to cycling club. They’ve attended cycling club for years.”
