Buckland’s Bikers

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Every story has a beginning and W. Bro Alfie Buckland presents this introduction to a wonderful display of brotherly love and service to a fellow mason by supporting him at an extremely difficult moment. This would lead to a most amazing outcome where Brethren from several masonic Provinces would team together on a sponsored bike ride from Exeter to Newquay to raise money for CHAPS, the prostate cancer charity which specialises in PSA testing for freemasons in several Provinces.

https://middlesexfreemasons.org.uk/cornish-rhapsody/

These tests are able to raise alarm bells should a PSA level be high enough to cause concerns. In turn the Charity would contact the brother concerned and advise him to contact his GP for further assessment and referral to a urologist for subsequent treatment. It should be noted that the following story is not an isolated incident in Middlesex and the successful implementation of PSA testing at both Harrow and Twickenham has already saved lives. Alfie has this to say by way of introduction:

DIAGNOSIS

“Members of the Circle of Friendship Lodge No 7320 received an invitation to attend a PSA test at Harrow masonic centre. We were all sat together with the usual friendly chat and banter. After a few days we received our results and all was looking good for everyone until W. Bro Allan Pulford explained that he had been red flagged and would need more tests to find out what was going on.

It turned out that he had prostate cancer, this was at a time whilst serving as ProvSGW. Allan emailed our Lodge members and explained the severity of what he was up against and explained that CHAPS had been helping him with advice on what course action to take. As a result of this diagnosis, he needed to step out of all his social activities for several months, but his spirit was always positive, and he was determined to beat the disease. The seeds of a charitable ride in aid of CHAPS by way of gratitude was arranged”.

AN APPEAL

In July we appealed for sponsorship for a charity cycle ride from Exeter to Newquay, led by Middlesex Lodges, on behalf of CHAPS, the prostate cancer testing and diagnosis charity, in support of Allan Pulford, who was recovering from prostate cancer having been diagnosed after a free PSA test at Harrow. The charity event was successfully completed over the days of the 29th and 30th August, with a cheque for £3,500 presented to the Circle of Friendship Lodge No 7320 Relief Chest at a special festive board organised by Towan Lodge No 7864 in Newquay. The final sum raised would be likely to increase this amount substantially. The festive board attracted a number of distinguished brethren from across Provinces to honour the achievements of the riders and their support team, including W Bro. Jim Mitchell, Deputy Provincial Grand Master of Middlesex, RW Bro. David G. Maskell, Provincial Grand Master of Cornwall and VW Bro. David G. Leaity Deputy Provincial Grand Master of Cornwall.

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The Cornish Connection

Alfie continues, The Circle of Friendship Lodge has many members from Harrow and Charity Steward, Bro Jayesh Maru explained that his uncle Bro Vasant Maru from Cornwall had attended his initiation meeting with several members of Towan Lodge 7684 a few years back. When I arrived at Harrow Masonic Centre for Jayesh’s initiation a massive coach from Cornwall was parked and this is where the connection was first made. The members of Towan Lodge continued to show their support with attending in numbers for Jayesh’s 3rd degree also his wife’s ladies night.

As soon as I approached Towan Lodge with the idea of organising a Charity bike ride from Exeter to Newquay and hopefully attending a Lodge meeting it all went crazy. They immediately contacted their Province to ask for an emergency meeting and informed me that the Provincial Grandmaster of Cornwall would also like to attend.

I knew this was starting to get serious, so I contacted our Deputy Provincial Grandmaster, Worshipful Brother Jim Mitchell who was enthused and asked to be booked in straight away.”

W Bro Jim Mitchell, Deputy Provincial Grand Master of MIddesex and W. Bro Alfie Buckland PProvAGDC W Bro Jim Mitchell, Deputy Provincial Grand Master of MIddesex and W. Bro Alfie Buckland PProvAGDC

The Riders

So, what of the ride itself? The roll of honour comprised nine riders (see the end of this article for their details) of which three were in their 70s and three in their 60s, including one Grand Officer, two active Provincial Officers and three Visiting Officers. They were aided by a support team. The route was approximately 90 miles with some very testing inclines over Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor. One intrepid rider, W. Bro. Martin Burt, has supplied the following report:

This was a tough and gruelling challenge made harder by the elements. Despite planning this for summer, the weather as we crossed Dartmoor was atrocious, gale force winds, driving rain and a lot of surface water on the roads which can mask dangerous pot holes. We had to endure these conditions through the toughest of the climbs meaning that as we re-grouped, even for a couple of minutes, being soaked through we became extremely cold, very quickly.

Through the meticulous planning of Simon Pearson, Dean Mortimer and Alfie Buckland every single road or pathway that we traversed had been pre-mapped, such that the support team of Mark Duncan and Steve Acton in two vans could pre-empt where to be at any given time. Both Mark and Steve had a folder detailing the precise route, each rider enabled an app on their phones so they could immediately make contact and/or be located in the event of an emergency or becoming lost. With one van in the rear and another ahead, they were able to quickly attend and assist riders with punctures or mechanical issues. Given that the riders collectively rode more than 1100 miles, in extreme conditions, we were extremely fortunate in only getting a couple of punctures.

It is important to understand that travelling such a long distance inevitably means driving on main roads, with cars passing at 60 mph, thus riding smart in small groups to enable cars to sit in the gaps when overtaking was not immediately possible. Simon Pearson or another experienced cyclist typically rode at the front, Dean Mortimer rode as the anchor man. Note sure if this was due to a lack of training by Dean or devotion to duty, but it was an excellent safety net to ensure no rider lost contact.

The fact that all the riders successfully came through this challenge safely and without incident is testament to the attention to detail and skills of the support team. The vans were loaded with water, food, snacks, nutrients, spare parts and spare kit, Dean even brought his bike in a bag so that any rider could keep pedalling if a bike required a time-consuming repair. All the participants paid their own way, covering travel, accommodation and dining expenses. Dean Mortimer went further by hosting the team at his Hunter’s Moon guest house. One or two of the riders even bought cycles for the event: extraordinary commitment, from an amazing group of people”.

HUNTERS MOON, DORSET HUNTERS MOON, DORSET

The Festive Board

Bro Alfie continues, “Towan Lodge organised a traditional Cornish Cream Tea to celebrate the achievement. There was a presentation from Allan Pulford his prostate cancer journey and he had made the journey to Cornwall along with a number of other freemasons from Buckinghamshire and Middlesex to support the event. The Lodge meeting was called off so that so that the three none masonic cycling team members could listen to W. Bro Allan Pulford give his presentation and the Temple was completely silent during Allan’s presentation.

The festive board was excellent with every square foot of space being utilised to get in as many as possible. Towan’s Charity Steward Bro. V. D. Maru had assembled dozens of quality prizes for the raffle and had pre-sold tickets to brethren who were unable to attend due to limitations on numbers. He worked tirelessly to raise as much money as possible. This culminated in a cheque being presented on the evening for £3,500 but with a commitment that the final donation might be considerably more. There will be an online auction to follow, and we await details of that so we too can participate.

CHAPS CHEQUE

Sincere thanks to the Towan Lodge WM W. Bro. Victor R. Williams  and W. Bro Keith Perkins (who ultimately could not attend himself as he was unwell) and all the members of the Lodge for creating an incredible occasion for us Middlesex and Buckinghamshire brethren as well as the other guests.”

RIDERS AND FUNDRAISERS

MIDDLESEX

  1. Bro Alfie Buckland – Circle of Friendship Lodge 7320
  2. Bro Dean Mortimer – Lest We Forget Lodge 7222
  3. Bro Brian Shaw – Sir Francis Burdett Lodge 1503
  4. Bro Martin Burt – Osterley Lodge 6430

Mrs Sevinc Burt

Mr Simon Pearson

Mr. Mark Eaton

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE

  1. Bro Frank Byrne – Verney Lodge 8849
  2. Bro Ian Bamsey – Verney Lodge 8849
  3. Bro Matt Jarvis – Wineslai Lodge 2435
  4. Bro Jamie Robinson – Wineslai Lodge 2435
  5. Bro Chris Watts – Grenville Lodge 1787

Support Drivers

  1. Bro Mark Duncan – Ferdinand de Rothschild Lodge 2420
  2. Bro Steve Acton – Verney Lodge 8849

EPILOGUE

After several months of radiotherapy treatment Allan received very encouraging results and is now in remission.

Altogether nearly £10,000 will be raised for this great charity but the full number of pledges still needs to be ratified as some lodges need to vote before the money can be released.

Donations are still welcome, and the recipient charity CHAPS will be able to provide good support by testing fellow freemasons in the different Provinces.

Donate Here

See also:

https://www.chaps.uk.com/

https://middlesexfreemasons.org.uk/red-letter-day/

https://middlesexfreemasons.org.uk/chaps-psa-follow-up-sessions/

https://middlesexfreemasons.org.uk/chaps-final-report/

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