Around Thames Valley in 80 Ways

Around Thames Valley in 80 Ways

Composite showing some of the means of travel employed in the competition

photos: Haddenham Rotary

Haddenham & District Rotary, along with Bicester Rotary, have been leading an initiative across the Thames Valley to raise funds for The Wheel Appeal.

The Wheel Appeal is aiming to raise £6,000,000 to provide over 2,000 disabled people with a new sports wheelchair, training and coaching that will enable them to participate in sport and enjoy competitive and recreational sport. The wheelchairs and training will be provided by WheelPower, the charity based at Stoke Mandeville Stadium, the home of the Paralympics.

Our Around Thames Valley in 80 Ways initiative was based on a series of relays and fellowship meetings between Rotary venues in each area of our Rotary District, linked to fundraising either at the fellowship meetings or other linked events. The relays formed a competitive challenge between clubs and areas to use the greatest variety of different forms of transport to travel to the meetings.

The initiative's aim was to:

• promote fellowship among Rotarians 
• generate maximum publicity for Rotary and WheelPower
• raise frunds for the Wheel Appeal, and
• enrich the lives and experiences of young people as part of the Paralympic legacy

The Opening Ceremony of Around Thames Valley in 80 Ways was held at Stoke Mandeville Stadium on Monday 8th April 2013. A photoshoot of some of the diverse forms of transport that could be used in the event preceded the main dinner and speakers. Fourteen clubs attended and were able to see around the stadium, which was the venue for the creation of the Paralympic flame in August 2012. The speakers were Mike Mackenzie, chairman of the Poppa Guttmann Trust and Paul Rushton of WheelPower. The batons for the relays were distributed to the lead club in each area.

To see pictures from the Opening Ceremony, please follow this link.

22 Rotary Clubs took part in the transport relays across six of District 1090's areas. In all a total of 110 different forms of transport were used, well over the "80 Ways" of the project's title!

Photographs from the area relays can be found in the links below:

The Rotary Purple Area: Haddenham & District, Princes Risborough, Jordans & District and High Wycombe 

To wrap up the Around Thames Valley in 80 Ways project, a Closing Ceremony was held at Adams Park Stadium in High Wycombe on 13th November 2013. The guest speaker was Martin MacElhatton, CEO of WheelPower. It was announced that District 1090 has raised 20,900 as its contribution to the national Rotary Wheel Appeal.

To read more about the Closing Ceremony, please follow this link.

Haddenham & District Rotary produced a quiz booklet on transport and wheelchair sport, which was sold to raise funds for The Wheel Appeal. The answers to the 91 questions can be seen by following this link