Landmark in sight as Jim gears up for swan song
A former Wishaw man is aiming to crash through his £200,000 fundraising target in his final charity cycle.
Jim Bertram, who was brought up in Newmains, has raised an incredible £196,000 for a variety of charities on incredible cycling challenges.
However, at the age of 55, Jim decided to call time on his fundraising efforts to spend more time with his family and work on his business.
Jim, who now lives in the Midlands, said: “Training just takes up too much of the time which I don’t have at the moment. With my work, I am up and down the country.
“We would like to see more of our family as well. My son lives in America and my other son is staying in Carluke.
“It’s only when I was looking back at some of the pictures from down the years then you realise just how well we have done, so I’m proud of what we have achieved.
“Myself and my partner Jo lost parents to breast cancer and heart problems, so we did a 24-hour event for a cancer charity and the British Heart Foundation.
“That’s one I’m really proud of.
“We also finished up a Stoke City to Rangers challenge in front of a full crowd at Ibrox with everyone cheering, which was brilliant.”
Jim’s final challenge will see him cycle from Wolves’Molineux Stadium to Rugby Park in Kilmarnock in aid of the Kris Boyd Charity, set up by the former footballer to encourage more people to talk openly about their mental health.
The challenge, which starts on June 1, will see riders stopping at Boyd’s former clubs Nottingham Forest, Middlesbrough and Rangers, with an additional stop at Fir Park in Motherwell before arriving at Kilmarnock on June 4.
Jim said:“Over lockdown, mental health became an issue for everyone so I wanted to do an event which helped those impacted.
“The Kris Boyd Charity seemed a natural choice as they support mental health and wellbeing.
“The fact I’ll be able to go through the streets near to home is an added bonus. On the third we will be finishing at Newhouse then we will be at Fir Park so it will be a chance to catch up with family and friends.”