Man takes on 100km bike ride in wife's memory

A widower will be taking part in a cycling challenge in memory of his "beautiful and glamorous" wife who died from cancer.

Mark Beesley will tackle the 100km (62-mile) event during Ride the Reservoir at Birmingham Newman University next Sunday, almost four years after his wife Stephanie's death.

The couple met in 2014 and were married in 2018 but she was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer in July 2022. She died later that year, aged 40.

Beesley, from Birmingham, said she was given the option of chemotherapy but the quality of her life would have been "diminished".

"She made the decision to not have any further treatment," he added, "and it was her wish to remain at home for her remaining days."

He praised the team at Birmingham Hospice for their help during his wife's illness and the support he received through its bereavement counselling service.

Paying tribute to her, Beesley said: "Steph was beautiful and very glamorous. She loved travelling and loved her music – she really enjoyed going to gigs.

"She had lots of friends and would always make time for them."

Beesley said he took up cycling after her death and had been looking for a longer bike ride to take part in before signing up for Ride the Reservoir.

He will be tackling the event with his late wife's best friend's dad, Beesley said, who was also a keen cyclist.

He said he had planned to raise £1,000 for Birmingham Hospice but had already exceeded that, with the total on his Just Giving page now at more than £2,000.

"It just shows how much Steph meant to so many people," he added.

Birmingham Hospice's Ride the Reservoir event takes place every year with cyclists able to take on 75km (46-mile), 100km (62-mile) or 100-mile (160km) rides.

The challenge, which is marking its 11th year, takes participants on a route around the city's reservoirs and parts of the surrounding countryside.

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