12-year-old Dexter “felt everything” as he set off from Woodley in Berkshire on his way to Paris by bike last August. His mission was to raise money for 3 charities, including Fanconi Hope and of course to have some fun along the way.
Football and sport lover, Dexter, has been fundraising for 4 years (yes you read that right – he was 8 when he started). “I was inspired by Captain Tom doing laps of his garden,” he told us, “I thought, maybe I could do something similar.”
Dexter’s previous challenges have involved “Dexters Decathlon” (trying 10 sports before he was 10), a marathon run around his crescent in a week, and camping out for 100 nights, all of which have raised thousands of pounds for charity.
“I really enjoy helping others” Dexter told us, “and I love coming up with new challenges.”
Raising money for Fanconi Hope became important to Dexter when his form tutor Sam Sampson told him that her son Theo was born with FA. “I just wanted to do something to help” Dexter told us, “And I really liked the things Fanconi Hope were doing.”
In terms of the challenge, he’d been thinking about doing something different and floated the idea to some people he met at an event. “A couple of hours after, it turned into a thing and got bigger and bigger.”
Any followers of Dexter’s social media accounts @bemoredexter will know that it took quite some effort to make happen. “I’m just so grateful for my mum and all the friends and businesses that supported me” he said.
Dexter’s mum Samantha not only helped him with social media and the fundraising side, but also got roped into cycling alongside him when one of his previous support cyclists had to drop out.
Dexter, who has advocated for sport as a route to mental health, told us he trained 2 to 3 days a week in the gym and then on bike rides outside. By the time he left on the first leg of the challenge from Berkshire to Portsmouth, the furthest he’d cycled in one go was 70 miles (slightly under the daily average he need to achieve for his 3-day cycle to be a success).
The first day Dexter completed his longest ride yet, dealt with his first puncture, had a bit of a fall and found that the South Downs included a lot of ups. “I was proud to have done the first day, it was hard, but I felt good about myself and ready to go on” he told us.
A night on the ferry prepared him for day two which was equally tough. “There was a really big hill,” he told us, “About a 20% incline and it went on forever.” On social media he wrote “I’m not going to lie, whilst I’ve physically been prepared for this, this is tougher than we could have imagined.”
“The last day was meant to be the shortest,” he told us, “But there were some mistakes and a few wrong turns and it ended up being over 100 miles”. It was 11.30 pm when they wheeled into Paris, “It was loud, there were flashing lights, and it felt a bit scary,” said Dexter who had previously enjoyed the calm of French orchards and villages.
Despite the unexpected hurdles, Dexter cycled 251 miles to complete his challenge in time for the inauguration of the Paralympic Games and a bit of sight-seeing around Paris.
He also surpassed his fundraising target, raising over 5000 pounds for each of the three charities he supported. For a small charity like Fanconi Hope, this is a huge amount, which will make a massive difference.
Big thanks to Dexter and his team for their support!
You can follow Dexter on X, Instagram and Facebook @bemoredexter where he will keep you informed of his next challenge to complete the Snowdonia Triathlon.