Local Assembly Member Paul Davies has joined the Wales Area manager of The Royal British Legion, veterans, serving personnel and other Assembly Members to race against the clock on an exercise bike to mark the Remembrance period in Wales and commemorate the Battle of Passchendaele 100 years ago. The 6 hour bike ride was held in the Senedd building, aiming to mark this very special year for Remembrance in Wales. Mr Davies represented Preseli Pembrokeshire by cycling as far as he could in 5 minutes and managed to cycle 1.25m in that timeframe.
The bike ride was organised by The Royal British Legion in Wales and builds on the successful bike ride held in the National Assembly in 2016. Members of Parliament will also undertake the same challenge next week along with members of the Scottish Parliament.
Mr Davies said: “I was delighted to join the Royal British Legion and take part in this very important event. The Royal British Legion provides invaluable support to the Armed Forces community right across Pembrokeshire and right across Wales and whilst I may not be at the top of the leaderboard, I was nonetheless pleased to have been able to support such a worthy cause’.
The target of 300 miles was achieved just after 3pm after over 6 hours of pedaling from everyone involved. The bikes were kindly donated by Pure Gym Cardiff with over 70 people taking part overall. The leading Assembly members on the day, cycling the greatest distance in 5 minutes, were Lee Waters AM and Hannah Blythyn AM.
Wales Area manager Ant Metcalfe said: ‘We were delighted to welcome Paul Davies to our annual Poppy Ride in Wales. This event is a different way of marking the Remembrance period alongside all of the other vital local and national events the Legion is involved with at this time. 2017 marks the centenary of the Battle of Passchendaele and we hope this event has brought us all together to remember and also raise awareness of those who continue to require the Legion’s support today. Over 70 people participated on the day including serving personnel from the Royal Navy along with Legion beneficiaries and members. It is always a real team effort and we were delighted to be able to work with the Assembly to host this once again’.