The weekend just gone saw Wales forwards Cory Hill and Dillon Lewis cycle the distance from North to South Wales for Tenovus, and over the course of last week the Men of Gwent underwent a similar endeavour for NHS Charities Together.
Leon Brown, Ashton Hewitt, Owen Jenkins, Tyler Morgan, Brandon Nanson, Arwel Robson and Jared Rosser had all been due to enjoy a much-needed break to Marbella. However, with lockdown putting paid to any notions of a boys’ holiday in the sun, they struck upon a more charitable idea: riding the distance from Newport to the famous Puerto Banús marina.
“We were just chatting about how the COVID-19 crisis has brought out the best in people, and we wanted to do something positive too,” says Jenkins, who recently signed a long-term contract at Rodney Parade. “We chucked the idea out there on Sunday night and the following day Tyler had set up the fundraising page.”
What started as an off-the-cuff suggestion turned into a 1566-mile bike ride split between the seven of them. “The trip may have gone belly-up in one sense, but we got to Marbella in some shape or form and managed to raise close to £4000 and counting,” Jenkins continues.
“We’re all exhausted now after riding 56 miles every day for four days.” Some tried to split the ride into indoor and outdoor pursuits, including Jenkins. “It was nice to get out because I live in a flat with no garden or balcony. Mind you, Leon was on his mountain bike for the first day before realising he’d need to source a Wattbike.”
Baking enthusiast Jenkins made sure his nutrition was on point in order to keep the energy up. “I made a batch of brownies on the first day and went through four on the first night,” he says.
Their S&C coach was a bit concerned when he heard what the players had planned. “He suspected it might be a bit too much,” reveals Jenkins. “He was probably right, to be honest! Thankfully we’ve got some time to recover though.
“We had WhatsApp group which was getting darker every night, with boys unsure if they could carry on. But we somehow managed to get it done.”
The players’ fundraising page can be found here.
