The Action Mental Health Granite Challenge is the virtual cycling challenge which took place 4th-11th October. It is designed to challenge cyclists of all ages, abilities and goals to clock up as many kilometres as possible in the week of World Mental Health.
Action Mental Health is a vital charity supporting mental health, so we were thrilled to be able to support it.
In usual years, the Challenge is a 50-mile loop around the stunning Mourne Mountains in Co. Down, Northern Ireland. Clearly, this couldn’t take place in the same format this year, but AMH were undeterred! For their DIY Challenge, they invited participants to take the week of 4th – 11th October, leading up to World Mental Health Day on the 10th of this month, to get the miles in. Datactics’ recently-created Runners & Riders Club took up the gauntlet and completed distances on commutes, on weekend spins, and as far away as Achill on Ireland’s western coast! As they say on their website:
Action Mental Health changes the lives of those living with mental ill-health and promotes resilience and well-being to future generations. Now more than ever, looking after your mental and physical health is so important. Despite the normal Granite Challenge not being able to happen this year, our DIY challenge is a brilliant opportunity for our friends in the cycling world to get on their bikes and enjoy the wonderful outdoors.
Miles, sponsorship and making a difference
Together, the team of Kieran Buchanan, Matt Flenley, Dave Brown and Marcus Lamb racked up 338 miles over the week, gaining sponsorship along the way of £175. Individually, they achieved impressive miles which for many of them marked a personal triumph. Marcus accumulated an impressive 336km (making up 61% of the team’s total), Matt achieved 82km, Dave racked up 72km and Kieran finished at 56km, all hitting or exceeding their personal targets.
There’s no doubt that long miles on the bike really helps clear the head! Even just the challenge of focusing on the next climb or taking a moment to look around you on a quiet country road does wonders for your mental wellbeing. Taking part from our separate locations helped bring us together as a team when we don’t get to see a great deal of each other, even with our office rotas in place. We would especially like to thank all those who sponsored us!
Matt Flenley, marketing & partnerships manager at datactics
Up next, a break?
Is the team going to take a bit of a breather now, after so many miles on the clock? We put that question to Head of DevOps, Dave Brown:
Well, not really! We’re putting together a team for the Red Bull Timelaps 2020, on 24th & 25th October, trying to get as many laps in the 25 hours from 12 PM to 12 PM on the day the clocks go back. Only two of us in “Team Datactics: Gives You Clean Data” have turbos to compete overnight, though, so it’s going to be a tough one!
Looks like we’ll need to check back on the 26th October to see how the team got on! Well done to all at Datactics, and everyone across NI who contributed to the Granite Challenge’s total of over £3,000 at the time of writing.
About Action Mental Health
In Northern Ireland, one in five adults are showing signs of a mental illness and when matched to 17 other countries, NI has the 2nd highest rates of mental ill-health. Statistics show that the prevalence of mental illness in NI is 25% higher than in England. Action Mental Health is here for you, so if you are reading this and would like to seek support, or support this amazing cause check out the website here.
You can read more about our past initiative here
