Over 40 members of a Bedford gym community used pedal power to help raise over £5,500 for two local charities.
The sixth annual ‘Spinathon’ at Club Towers in Clapham raised £5,625 for the club’s member-chosen charities, Above and Beyond Cancer Foundation and Mind BLMK.
Members were encouraged to don fancy dress and take part in one or more of the five spin classes that were held throughout the day. A record-breaking 18 members took on the challenge of all five classes, and over 40 members took part in total.
The programme for the charity day was put together by Towers’ instructors Hazel, Louise, Nat, Jason, Dave, Matt and Jayden, who generously give their time not only on the day itself, but also through the many hours of preparation beforehand.
“The classes were brilliantly put together, with awesome music to keep everyone motivated and those legs moving,” said Towers’ marketing manager, Jo Saywell.
“Among the many highlights was Jayden’s quiz extravaganza, while Hazel and Louise delivered a mystery tour in full ‘Scooby Doo’ dress.
“Matt took us skiing through the hills. Dave and Jason powered the room with brilliant tunes, looking as sharp as ever, and Nat completed the line-up with gorgeous futuristic vibes.”
And the creativity didn’t stop there. Members went ‘above and beyond’ with their fancy dress outfits, some even complete with remote control lights.
“Not only do they spend so much time making them, but they also kindly donate them to our crèche afterwards, where the children are now thoroughly enjoying them,” said Jo.
“Making a huge difference”
Representatives from the club’s nominated charities – Sam Yates from Above and Beyond and Claire Bruce from Mind BLMK – also took part in the day.
Joking that her legs had only just recovered, Claire said: “A huge thank you to Club Towers and all those who organised, took part in and supported the Spinathon. It was such a fantastic, fun and creative event.
“We are hugely grateful to everyone at Club Towers for supporting Mind BLMK.
“The money raised goes towards supporting our mental health and wellbeing services across our local communities. Our aim is to make sure that no one has to face a mental health problem alone, and your support helps us in working towards that.”
Karen Chin and Jayne Proctor, co-founders of Above and Beyond, echoed those sentiments: “We are so deeply grateful for everyone who took part, dressed up, and generally pushed themselves for our local cause.
“Truly, to a charity of our size, this will make such a huge difference in helping us to continue to bring much-needed personalised cancer support to patients within the local community.”
