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Cyclist’s success in Ditchling Beacon 100-summit challenge

Kurt Charnock spent 37 hours and raised £1,400 for mental health care in memory of friend, despite the stormy conditions

A cyclist from Hove has ridden up the infamous Ditchling Beacon 100 times in a row to raise awareness and funds for mental health care in his community in memory of a friend.

Kurt Charnock, 41, set out to tackle the Beacon, which measures on Strava as a 1.4km long, 133m high segment with an average gradient of nine percent, 100 times - a challenge which he has dubbed the Cesaro Climb, in memory of close friend, Fabrice Cesaro, who took his own life.

He completed the feat at 1am on Monday morning, after battling with the weather for a total of 44 hours. Charnock also managed to raise £1,400 towards providing a counsellor for his local sporting community, as well as successfully opening a dialogue about mental health.

The 41-year old set out at midnight on Friday night and rode for 23 hours with occasional tea breaks, then slept for four hours in the front seat of his van, before completing his challenge between 4am Sunday and 1am Monday.

In order to keep count Charnock had to do away with his trusty Garmin Edge 1000, which could only muster 21 ascents before its battery packed in. Instead, he reverted to a rudimentary form of counting in the shape of 100 marked clothes pegs which were carried up the hill individually, and remain at the top of the Beacon fixed to a tree.

If riding up one of the most challenging climbs in the south wasn’t hard enough on the legs, the weather conditions certainly made things a little more exhausting. The Hove man told road.cc exactly how hard it was.

“We had between 35 and 40 mile-an-hour winds,” Charnock said. “I think it was the worst cycling weekend we’ve had this year.

“You know, when it’s that bad people say it’s soul destroying, it really is, you just can’t make progress. The higher up the hill I was, the stronger the winds were.

“I was at a crossroads at 50 climbs. A couple of friends came along and could see what state I was in, and told me that I didn’t have to keep going.

“They said that I’d done what I set out to achieve, which was to raise awareness for mental health, and for Fabrice, who died. I got people to talk about it, and feel comfortable talking about it. But I thought, I had to finish it.

“Climb 80 to climb 97 felt like an eternity, I just got lost in those numbers, it might as well have been 590.

“Cycling the same bit of road over and over again, it’s really tough on the mind.”

Kurt’s decision to undertake this ride stemmed from the tragic loss of his friend Fabrice Cesaro who took his own life last year after a private battle with depression.

“I didn’t want that to be the end of the story for Fabrie,” Charnock said. “I wanted to do something that stood out, something that would help to bring in sponsorship so that we could have enough money to set up a counsellor.

“Now, should anyone in our cycling family, or even the wider sporting community, need to talk to someone, they can get in touch with me, and I’ll pay the bill.”

This one off challenge isn't where Mr Charnock’s efforts and commitment to improving mental healthcare ends.

Following the success of this, the first Cesaro Climb, Mr Charnock has decided to set up an annual event to summit the Beacon 100 times on the last Saturday in March.

“I’m very pleased to tell you that I won’t be doing them all. From next year on, we’ll be doing 100 summits of the Beacon between us. If you want to ride up on the day, you’ll have to pay £10 into the fund to help any athletes who are having difficulties.”

“That'll put at least £1,000 a year into the pot, and will hopefully allow something good and something long-living to come from this.”

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25 comments

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Anquetilslovechild | 8 years ago
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Impressive and laudable on every level. Well done mate!

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gr3g0ree | 8 years ago
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13.300m of climbing then with 100 repeats. Wow. That is unbelievable. Especially in those conditions.
Whenever I get there again, will never complain at how hard it is, and to keep this story alive anytime I hear a moan about Ditchling Beacon will mention this story.

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CycleNut | 8 years ago
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Well done Kurt, mission accomplished!

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psychle | 8 years ago
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I wonder if Fabrice knew how much you cared, Kurt. Your accomplishment is the epitome of friendship. Donation made in respect of same.

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Yorky-M | 8 years ago
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top mark. powerofabike

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BearstedCC | 8 years ago
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Chapeau Kurt... Epic achievement

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GazHove | 8 years ago
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Went up the Beacon on Saturday after my Saturday club ride, when you got close to the top the wind was pretty horrific. what an amazing achievement. I hope you cope well with recent events and this proves to be a positive step forward for others.

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Martin Thomas | 8 years ago
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That is epic! Well done Kurt! Not only did I not make it out to support him because of the weather - but I also bailed on a Sunday sportive for the same reason. I managed a whole hour on my turbo over the entire weekend. I have some Rule 5 ground to make up I think... Small donation duly made to the fund.

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zaimuk | 8 years ago
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Very well done

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Simon E | 8 years ago
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"He completed the feat at 1am on Monday morning, after battling with the weather for a total of 44 hours"

Wow, that is really impressive.

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Aboold3544 | 8 years ago
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A gritty, admirable achievement, delivered for all the right reasons, but unlikely that many will use the fund and money raised.

Mental health issues still have enormous stigma attached, and few who are suffering will be willing to go cap-in-hand to a peer asking for help and financial aid. It's too shameful for many. Perhaps a collaboration with a local counselling service, with a dedicated fund for local athletes to access anonymously might have better results.

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ficampb | 8 years ago
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I was very prilvaged to see this amazing event happen. Mr Charnock has set up a fund for anyone that would like to make a donation

Fabrice Cesaro Charity Fund
Barclays Bank
K.Charnock
Sort code 20-12-80
Ac no 73234002

All donations are logged and gratefully recieved

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Scoob_84 | 8 years ago
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A top effort and a good cause too - i'd throw in some money if i knew how to

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Skynet | 8 years ago
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That sounded hard work. To be honest I didn't think he'd manage it so really well done.

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StevePurcell | 8 years ago
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Chapeau! Donation page ?

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runskiprun | 8 years ago
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well done! I daren't go near the Beacon unless its the middle of summer!

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LarryDavidJr | 8 years ago
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Chapeau!

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Davidn37 | 8 years ago
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Where can I make a donation?

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Kadinkski | 8 years ago
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I went along for one summit on Saturday - they were the toughest conditions I can remember, the wind was determined to blow you all the way back down. Sunday was even worse apparently. Amazing effort, well done!

ps. road.cc you need to correct the hours you mention - 37 in the deck then 44 elsewhere.

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PaulBox | 8 years ago
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Just been looking for somewhere that I can make a donation, anybody got a link?

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Daveyraveygravey | 8 years ago
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I feel bad that I didn't go along and cheer Kurt along, the weather was bad enough on Sunday morning to keep me indoors, hiding behind "need another recovery day" as an excuse.

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jemm555 | 8 years ago
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Does kurt have a just giving site? Chapeau.

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Jeroen0110 | 8 years ago
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well done!

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Zermattjohn | 8 years ago
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Chapeau.

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ron611087 | 8 years ago
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Well that's popped my bubble. I did it once and I was pooped.

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