Last weekend a 40 strong group of wives and girlfriends of serving Welsh guards cycled the distance from Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, where their other halves are currently deployed, all the way back to England. The 4,517 mile trip took place on static bikes on the forecourt of Wellington Barracks, home of the Foot Guards.
This fantastic event took place to raise money for the Welsh Guards Afghanistan Appeal. The Appeal was launched in the Summer of 2009, the year in which the Welsh Guards were first deployed to Afghanistan and a year in which it suffered a number of losses and injuries. Three years later and they are coming to the end of their second tour and still facing great demands, losses and injuries.
The Welsh Guards Afghanistan Appeal helps the families and dependents of those killed in action, by responding promptly to problems of bereavement and hardship amongst other worthwhile activities.
The Welsh Guard WAGs came to Clothes2Order to equip themselves for their cycling challenge with some bright red, vibrant hoodies and comfortable t-shirts.
Sam Bossi, wife of Welsh Guards commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Dino Bossi. said; ‘The atmosphere at the weekend was amazing. Having the t-shirts certainly helped with team spirit as many of us didn’t know each other before the event. We chose red as they mirror the red tunics that our husbands/boyfriends wear on ceremonial duty.’
Some famous faces
We were also excited to hear that the t-shirts were given to everyone that cycled for them, including Garrison Sargent Major Billy Mott – often seen at major London ceremonial events and Ryan Jones, Triple Grand Slam Winner and Captain of the Welsh Rugby Team.
Here at clothes2order we are in awe of the huge task they took on and not only completed but smashed! (After reaching ‘London’ they pushed themselves even further and made it to ‘Cardiff’ – a mammoth 4867 miles!).