Vet Nurse Laura Lacey: Fundraising for Dogs Trust

 

BOXING DAY DIP NO DROP IN THE OCEAN AS DOG LOVER BRAVES THE ELEMENTS TO RAISE FUNDS FOR HOMELESS HOUNDS!

An animal lover and her dog have undertaken the ultimate challenge and leapt into the Irish Sea on Boxing day to raise money for Dogs Trust. Whilst the rest of Wales were recovering from over indulgence on Christmas Day, Laura Lacey, a Veterinary Nurse for Dogs Trust and her dog  Molly took to the freezing water, alongside colleague Louise Card, at the 33rd annual Llandudno Boxing day swim to raise over £1500 for Dogs Trust over a series of events.

This is just  one of many of Laura’s fundraising challenges as she has already taken part in a metafit class dressed in a dog outfit and her next feat will see cycle from London to Paris to raise further funds for the charity. Laura’s commitment to dog welfare extends beyond her fundraising efforts as having worked  as part of Dogs Trust  campaigns team in Wales for the past  year she sees first-hand the valuable work which her fundraising efforts will  help to support.

Laura explains.” It was pretty chilly but raising funds for a cause I am so passionate about was well worth it and Molly absolutely loved getting involved. I’m really looking forward to the next challenge. Whenever training gets tough I am quickly spurred on by the knowledge that all proceeds from the bike ride will be going to Dogs Trust so we will be able to continue caring for as many dogs as possible, until they find loving homes of their own. “

To help Laura raise pounds for hounds please visit

www.doitforcharity.com/Llacey

 

28/04/2014: Laura has completed the London to Paris Cycle!

Wow I'm exhausted, every muscle aches, blisters on my hands, no strength and red raw in parts. But it was amazing! The friendships made through the sweat and tears will last for sure. 

We got to crystal palace at 6am wed for briefing and left at 7. Glorious sunshine, busy roads, traffic in London, then we hit the South Downs, hills that just went up and up and up.... Water stop then more gentle till lunch. After lunch a 15 mile uphill before we reached the ridgeway! Killer hills and we finally reached Dover, some of us missed our ferry though due to "detours"! the crew did an Amazing job getting 24 of us on the next ferry and we finally got to our hotels In Calais at 9,45! 106 miles done. Sleep.

 Day 2 was beautiful sunshine, Huge hills, little villages, pretty churches all 76 miles from Calais to abbeville, through the Somme. Very emotional. The amount of effort it took to get back on the saddle that second morning was amazing. After the first 10 miles everything was numb again, my fingers barely move.

Day 3 abbeville to beauvais 65 miles ish. I cried the first 10 today though the distances were getting shorter and the hills getting a little lower. I felt nauseous all day. Focused on sugar and gaviscon. The fast boys were slowing down too now so it became a little more sociable even including a quick pub stop 10 miles from Town. This was fancy dress day. (I went as a bay watch lifeguard) but it was entertaining riding with characters such as bananaman, the three musketeers, captain caveman...

 Final day, only 50 ish miles from Paris, woke up to howling wind and horizontal rain and it never stopped till 3pm! The cold wind cut to the core, the rain meant the roads were saturated and slippy, my feet squelched in my trainers, stopping to eat was out of the question (till we found a dry macdonalds) every movement on the bike saddle hurt something. Thigh muscles were burning. We rode none stop till a holding area in a park in Paris 4 miles from the Eiffel Tower. Finally the sun came out and the wind and rain had gone. We waited till everyone had arrived so all 160 could ride together the final leg. (Some through injury etc hadn't ridden all day each day but did manage the last section) A very emotional ride in for all of us. The crew did a rolling roadblock for us supported by amazing French attitudes we rode through red lights with police permission. The Eiffel Tower was an amazing sight to finally see. So we did laps around it for friends and family to see. I cried a lot! Seeing the relief on people's faces and the pride on achieving it for their charities or loved ones lost and battling was truly astounding. A well earned glass of champagne before a soak in the bath and dinner, drinks and dancing all night. 

A truly inspiring experience and I am so proud to have done it for dogs trust. (Glad to be home though, limping along slowly, lazing on the sofa now).