West Yorkshire man encourages people to bike for epilepsy
A West Yorkshire man who has epilepsy is encouraging people to get on their bikes and participate in the Epilepsy Action Harrogate Sportive event in October.
Carl Foster, who lives in Horsforth, is urging people to participate in the charity event that will take riders out into the surrounding countryside showcased during stage one and two of this year’s Tour de France.
Mr Foster himself was diagnosed with epilepsy at the age of 14 in 2001.
When his seizures were at their worst, Carl could have up to ten a week.
As a teenager, regular seizures meant he had to miss a lot of school in the run up to his GCSE exams, and his parents used to worry.
He said: “I used to play sport a lot as a teenager. I was a very active person and regularly enjoyed playing football and cycling. However, it became apparent that exercise was triggering my seizures so I had to give both of these activities up. This was really tough as I had been playing for the same football team from the age of seven.
“My seizures are now mostly controlled and the recent success of British cyclists inspired me to take up cycling again as an adult. Living in Yorkshire, I have lots of great cycling routes on my doorstep. I think there’s no better way to enjoy the beautiful Yorkshire countryside.”
Carl currently works as a fundraising events officer at Epilepsy Action, an organisation working with and for people affected by epilepsy.
Epilepsy affects around one in every 100 people and it is estimated that around 87 people are diagnosed with the condition every day in the UK. There are approximately 21,800 people living with epilepsy in West Yorkshire alone.
For more information about the event, please visit www.epilepsy.org.uk/harrogatesportive.
