Kildare man raises funds for juvenile arthritis with 24 hour cycling race

A Kildare man who set out to raise funds for  Juvenile Idiopathic Arthriti by taking part in the National 24 Hour Cycling Time Trial race has completed the race and exceeded his fundraising target by a factor of five.

Kenny Bucke was diagnosed in his mid thirties with Rheumatoid Arthritis which was devastating initially for a man who has been a keen amateur bicycle racer for many years.

Last weekend he took part in the 24 Hour Cycling Time Trial which started on Saturday, July 21 near Kilcullen. The aim was simple - just keep cycling laps of a loop for 24 hours and see how many kilometres your can clock up.

Kenny managed 570kms in the 24 hours which was a respectable effort. He told the Leinster Leader he was “happy enough with that.

“But if I never see the Kilcullen to Athy road again it’ll be too soon!” he joked. That road is part of the loop.

“I was genuinely nervous about what my body would do but it just about held together. Had some serious knee pain in the last hour but the job was done at that stage so I suffered through.”

Kenny, several 100kms in to the race.

However, just as importantly, Kenny managed to hit his fundraising target. He raised €1,526 for iCAN, which is a 100% volunteer organisation looking after young people with juvenile arthritis.

However, his fundraising aim initially was a more modest €300. 

“When most people think of arthritis, they think of old people complaining of aches and pains, but that is only one tiny part of the story,” says Kenny who is from Newbridge originally, but now lives in Allenwood.

“Many forms of arthritis are inflammatory autoimmune conditions and can impact much more than just joints.

It can affect eyes and organs; autoimmune related disease can impact different joints at different times and can causes chronic pain and fatigue.

“There are children and teenagers whose lives are seriously impacted by Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, and who are waiting in pain for treatment." He said that as well as raising funds, he also wanted to raise awareness of the debilitating disease.

To donate, click here.

Keeping the fueling going in the middle of the night