As a materials testing company everyone at Instron usually sees fatigue as a weakness, but 3 Engineers from our UK office actively seek out fatigue for thrills on the weekends.
These 3 mad mountain bikers are going to fatigue test their own bodies over a gruelling 200 km (160 miles) off-road course to raise money for a very deserving local charity.
The Iain Rennie Grove House Hospice Care charity provides palliative and respite care for terminally ill patients in the hospice center itself or in the comfort of their own home. Started 25 years ago for a young sports-mad engineer, just like our 3, the Iain Rennie Hospice has provided much-needed care and support 24 hours a day 365 days a year to 10,000 patients and their families in the local area! The nurses and staff providing this support don’t give into fatigue easily and nor will our boys!
The ride will take our team across wild (and since it is the UK probably wet) terrain - a test of physical and mental endurance taking our brave riders far beyond their usual limits. Our plucky team is looking forward to the long hill climbs, steep descents, have vowed to laugh in the face of metrological adversity (wind, rain, and freezing temperatures to you and me), and of course to endure the inevitable saddle sores armed only with a tube of antiseptic and a smile.
Our 3 mountain bikers have shown their creative side in raising money for the charity as well. They will be riding in their very own Instron Cycling Team cycling jerseys. They’ve sold 45 jerseys to other Instron colleagues, so look out next time you are on the trail!
We are hoping that, unlike most specimens we test, these charity-supporting bikers will not have a point of failure and that all 3 of them successfully complete the ride, fatigued, but definitely not weak!