Remote Timelaps this year due to COVID-19

Usually, the race would take place in Windsor Great Park, but with Covid restrictions in place, Red Bull timelaps had made it possible to take part remotely. So, team Ģ������Ƶ: Gives You Clean Data filled the 25 hours on the roads around Belfast, Lisburn and Hillsborough and overnight in living rooms on the dreaded turbos, with only a brief break overnight when one of the competitors felt unwell.

Marcus accumulated 115.77 miles towards the total

Amid challenging weather, with gusty winds in every direction, the miles racked up, especially from Marcus, who was the team’s MVP with 115.77 miles towards the total. It was a fitting contribution to the man who brought competitive and recreational cycling to Ģ������Ƶ and has given the whole team a lot of inspiration to get active, get healthy, and – increasingly – get competitive!

Congratulations to the winners!

This is now the second cycling challenge the team has taken on, after the timelaps at DIY Granite Challenge for Action Mental Health earlier in the month. Congratulations to the overall winners, Team Innovation, with an awe-inspiring 673.91 miles.

Looking ahead?

I think it’s all about setting personal goals – the Winter can be a hard time to get out and get active but I think it’s important. – Marcus

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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 s 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 4^th – 11^th October, leading up to on the 10th of this month, to get the miles in. Ģ������Ƶ’ recently-created Runners & Riders Club took up the gauntlet and completed distances on commutes, on weekend spins, and as far away as 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 24^th & 25^th 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 Ģ������Ƶ: 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 26^th October to see how the team got on! Well done to all at Ģ������Ƶ, 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 2^nd 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  

You can read more about our past initiative here

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At Ģ������Ƶ, the Macmillan Coffee Morning was a great success, where thanks to the generosity of staff we managed to raise £331! We want to take this opportunity to thank the social committee here at Ģ������Ƶ, namely and , who played big roles in the organisation of the coffee mornings. Yes, coffee mornings! Due to current COVID-19 restrictions, in order to create a safe environment for everyone in the company to take part, three separate mornings were set aside to support this amazing cause.  

Easy to get involved, easy to support

Every year, thousands and thousands of Macmillan Coffee Mornings take place to raise awareness and accumulate funds for the . This charity does amazing work and each year people throughout the UK and further afield have the chance to sign up online. A ‘fundraising kit’ is then sent to you, including top tips and goodies making it easy to plan your physical or virtual coffee morning. The kit included a ‘how-to guide’; recipes; table cloth; bunting; cake flags; balloons and more; to get involved with MacMillan, visit their website

Here at Ģ������Ƶ, we have a strong track record of supporting causes that are close to our hearts, and with Macmillan Cancer Charity actively doing some amazing work, we were delighted to share in the national “Coffee Morning”; it’s great to see so much support for this amazing cause.

“We wanted to give something back”

We asked Paddy to give us his thoughts on why Ģ������Ƶ decided to take part.

“We chose to support Macmillan Cancer Support as most of us have known someone who has fought cancer. The nurses have been working especially hard this year and we wanted to give something back. Of course, one of the hardest parts of lockdown was coming up with virtual social events to keep the team connected. When we were finally allowed back in the office with new social distancing measures in place, it was a great opportunity to have an in-person event. However, there needed to be some differences to a normal coffee morning! Treats from the local bakery were individually wrapped and no more than 4 people could be in the kitchen at one time. Nevertheless, it was still great to catch up with everyone over a coffee. The event was a big success and we’re looking forward to doing this again!”,

Get involved

If you would like to donate to Macmillan, simply follow this link to directly donate to the cause here:

You can read about our next initiative here

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If you can and wish to donate, please go to our fundraising page  and helps us raise as much help as possible!

“This September, or whenever works best. Socially distanced or virtual. We need you more than ever, to help the millions living with cancer.”&�Բ�����;–&�Բ�����;

The World’s Biggest Coffee Mornings are Macmillan’s biggest fundraising event

People all over the UK host their own Coffee Mornings and donations on the day are made to Macmillan. The official date for the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning is Friday 25 September, but you can hold yours whenever and however you like – even if you’re not in the same room as your guests.

In 2019, MacMillan has raised an incredible £27.5m and are aiming to top that this year.

How you can get involved – Join the movement! 

All you have to do is  and you’ll receive a free Coffee Morning Fundraising Kit to get you started.

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