FUNDRAISER IN MEMORY OF JOHN IBBOTSON

Photo: Jen Mitchell

For all those cake addicts out there of which there are a few!!

JOHN IBBOTSON ‘CAKE QUEST 2007’

John Ibbotson or ‘Ibbo’ as he was more affectionately known was a unique and very special person. Someone who combined his passion for racing at the highest level with a sense of fun which he passed on to anyone he came into contact with.

He raced professionally in Europe, mixing it with some of his childhood heroes, and achieved much in his short but action packed life. After having ‘just one more season’ in the UK John finally retired from racing in 2003 to spend more time with his family and start Fit-For, a thriving coaching service. From the outset his list of clients started to grow at an amazing rate as he somehow managed to combine the serious side of training to reach one’s goals with a sense of fun, an infectious enthusiasm touched all under his wing. His success as a coach was inevitable as he never underestimated the importance of enjoying riding a bike, of finding a good cafė and perhaps most importantly, great cake!

Sadly John passed away on 27^th September 2005 and left a hole too large to fill. The coaching side of Fit-For ceased but a number of his friends and clients decided to keep the name going and run a club in his memory……..

With this in mind, on October the 14^th 2007, we bring you the first of what we hope will be many Ibbo Cake Quests. Three distances are on offer to cater for varying levels of fitness, all starting and finishing in John’s home of Walton on the Hill in Surrey.

Rides are denoted as:

Jaffa Cakes 60 km
Carrot Cakes 110 km
Fruit Cakes 150 km

Entries in advance, with cheques payable to: The John Ibbotson Memorial Fund for £10, or £15 entry on the line.

Ibbo Cake Quests
c/o Sue Ibbotson
2 Mere Cottages,
Witheybed Corner
Walton-on-the-Hill
Surrey
KT20 5BE

Entry forms are at www.Fit-For.com and must accompany your cheque, please

As a warm up event to get everyone in the mood, a fundraising barbecue is taking place on September 30^th. This will take place in the field behind the Fox and Hound pub in Walton on the hill from 1.00 - 5.00pm. Food and drink costs £10 per head or £5 for children, vegetarians are also catered for. Everyone is welcome and with an increasing list of amusements and entertainment planned with highlights such as the “wonky bike challenge” and a “flying monkey competition” it is sure to bring a smile to anyone’s face…John would have loved it!

All profits raised will go towards ‘The John Ibbotson Memorial Fund’ which aims to help support carefully selected young aspirant riders making their first tentative steps towards racing in Europe….