GVA Riders Take on Three-Day Challenge for Happy Days
Two members of the GVA team, Pete Ollerenshaw and Jack Lumb, took on a gruelling three-day cycling challenge in support of Happy Days, a charity supporting people experiencing homelessness across the region. Riding as part of a wider 40-strong peloton, the pair covered around 200 miles over three days — battling extreme weather, physical fatigue, and more than a few moments of doubt along the way.
Pete, an operative at GVA who drives wagons and operates heavy plant across the company’s tree renewal and vegetation clearance work, was approached about the ride by colleague Chris Dyson, a couple of months before the event. As an already keen cyclist, it didn’t take much persuading. He was joined by fellow GVA colleague Jack Lumb, an arborist with the company, and the pair rode together throughout the challenge as part of a staggered ten-rider group.
The Route
Organised by Happy Days, the challenge began at the Malt House in Rishworth, with the 40-strong field split into four groups to spread the load on the road. The first day’s route ran through Ripponden, Sowerby Bridge, and West Vale to Elland, before climbing up and over the Pennines and down into Chester — 82 miles in what Pete describes as some of the toughest conditions he’s ridden in.
“It was the worst weather I’ve ever ridden a bike into. Absolutely shocking.”
The second day brought a marked change in fortune: a 65-mile loop out into the Welsh borders and back to Chester, in bright sunshine and, by all accounts, spectacular scenery. The group closed out the evening together with a meal in Chester, before setting off the following morning to retrace their route home — a 76-mile final leg back to the Malt House.
Pushing Through
Every challenge has its low point, and for this group, it came on day one, sheltering from the rain in a McDonald’s in Ashton-under-Lyne.
“We were all crowded into this McDonald’s, dripping wet, and there was water everywhere. We were all thinking, why are we doing this? But it was for charity, so you just get on with it.”
That focus on the bigger picture carried the group through the toughest stretches. Even in the worst of the weather, Pete says morale among the riders stayed high — a shared sense of purpose that kept everyone moving forward together.
“We kept thinking about the end goal — what the money raised would mean for the charity, and for the people it would help. That’s what got us through it.”
Reflecting on the Challenge
For Pete, completing the ride was as much a personal milestone as a fundraising one.
“It’s made me believe in my abilities a bit more. It’s not just physical fitness — it’s mental. It’s about self-belief, knowing you can go further than you think you can.”
His advice for anyone considering a similar challenge is characteristically straightforward: have a go. It’s a message he circled back to when asked to sum up the whole experience — training helps, but the real first step is simply deciding to try.
Pete already has his sights set on his next challenge: a 120-mile coast-to-coast ride from Morecambe to Whitby, to be completed in a single day.
Supporting Happy Days
Happy Days works to support people experiencing homelessness and crisis in the local community, providing accommodation, practical support, and opportunities for people to rebuild their lives. Through the efforts of Pete, Jack, and the wider group of riders, GVA is proud to have contributed to a cause making a genuine difference to some of the most vulnerable people in the region.
Challenges like this reflect exactly the kind of culture GVA strives to build — one where colleagues support one another, push their own limits, and give back to the communities the company operates in. Pete’s ride is also the driving force behind another recent GVA initiative: read more about the GVA Bike2Work Scheme, which Pete was instrumental in bringing to the company.
GVA would like to congratulate Pete, Jack, and every rider who took part in this year’s Happy Days charity bike ride.
