Nathan Oakes and Luke Oates haven't ridden more than forty miles at a stretch
Two young cyclists will be counting on the comfort of strangers as they travel from Land's End to John O'Groats in aid of a south Wales valleys youth project. Nathan Oakes and Luke Oates will stay in church halls along the route of their journey from 8 to 22 August. They're looking to raise funds for the church-backed Gigabites Youth Project in Bargoed which runs a youth cafe, IT centre and other facilities. The aim is to fund three full time salaries as grant aid is running out.
Bargoed is a typical valleys community once dependent on coal mining
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Like many communities in the south Wales valleys, Bargoed has suffered from the decline of coal mining and heavy industry. Gigabites was set up by a local charity, Churches in Action, amid concern at the lack of facilities for young people in the area. Nathan, 22, from Fleur-de-lys, is one of two part-time youth workers with the project. It also employs a full-time project manager and an IT instructor. Luke, a 21-year-old student currently at university in Aberystwyth, is a member of one of the main churches supporting the project. They aim to cover the distance of 950 miles at a rate of 70 to 90 miles per day and hope to raise over £1,000. "We've been cycling together a few years now, but no more than 30 or 40 miles in one go," says Nathan. "It's going to be tough, a real challenge, but we're confident we'll be able to do it."
The Gigabites cafe offers IT facilities, computer games and a TV room as well as running regular workshops
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Open three evenings a week plus afternoons during the summer holidays, Gigabites offers activities for young people aged 11 to 25. The premises include a cafe, IT facilities, TV room, table tennis and computer games. It also stages workshops in activities such as pottery and mosaics provided by outside organisations. As of August 2009 around 500 young people had visited Gigabites, beating the 2008 total of 460. Local vicar the Reverend Andy Bookless recently raised over £1,000 for the project through a sponsored table tennis challenge. A £34m regeneration project is currently under way in Bargoed, a typical valleys community whose prosperity has suffered from the decline of coal mining and heavy industry.
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