Two work colleagues are cycling from Land's End to Sumburgh Airport in the Shetland Isles to honor a Prestwick man who died of prostate cancer. Rob Thick, from Prestwick, and Hadley Gibson, from Carlisle, are undertaking the 10-day, 1000-mile challenge to raise awareness of the disease.
Honouring Kieran Clark
The ride is dedicated to their late colleague and close friend, Kieran Clark, from Prestwick, who died in November at the age of 38 from prostate cancer. Before his passing, his male colleagues from the NATS Outstations team took PSA tests to check for the disease.
According to a spokesperson for the group, another teammate, Paul Graham from Paisley, tested positive despite having no symptoms. As a result, Graham underwent surgery to remove his prostate and is awaiting news on whether he needs radiotherapy. The spokesperson said: "Paul feels that Kieran was able to save his life through his death."
The Challenge
Rob and Hadley are cycling from Land's End to Sumburgh Airport from 1-10 July to support their friend and highlight the importance of getting checked. They were due to pass through their home regions between 5-7 July. The goal is to raise £20,000; as of July 3, they had raised more than £7,700.
Fundraising and Impact
On their fundraising page, the group wrote: "The ride is being organised in memory of our good friend and colleague Kieran Clark, who we sadly lost in November to prostate cancer at the young age of 38. Kieran was someone many of us worked alongside, shared good times with and his loss has been deeply felt by a huge number of people."
They added: "As a tribute to Kieran, and his many years working as an air traffic control engineer for NATS, we are cycling from his most southerly site Land’s End air navigation beacon to the furthest north which is Sumburgh air navigation beacon in the Shetlands."
The funds raised will go to Prostate Cancer UK, Macmillan Cancer Support, and Cancer Research UK. The group noted: "Every mile we ride will be in memory of Kieran and in support of everyone affected by similar circumstances."
