Fundraiser attacked on charity bike ride

A woman on a charity cycle ride has described her terror when she was attacked on a canal towpath.

Gillian Ashworth, 61,  was cycling diagonally across the country from Dover to Cape Wrath to raise money for children in Kenya when she was assaulted.

The attack happened on day eight of hour journey on the canal near Stretford, not far from Old Trafford cricket ground and Manchester United’s stadium.

She said: “I’d ridden from home and went on the the towpath alongside the Bridgewater canal - a wide, smooth tarmac path. 

“There was hardly anyone on it, but another cyclist suddenly appeared ahead, riding at speed and really recklessly. 

“He was on the wrong side of the path - mine - and I stopped, as far in to the edge as I could, and waited for him to pass - there was plenty of room on the path for him to do so.

“But he carried on and started gesticulating wildly for me to get out of his way - which given the weight of my bike with all of its bikepacking bags wouldn’t have been possible even if I’d wanted to. 

“He continued on, suddenly braked when really close to me, and - much to my amazement - tried to steer his bike on my inside. 

“He crashed into the bushes and into my bike, almost knocking me off, though I’d instinctively turned and leant my bike away from him. 

“As I tried to get me and my bike back upright he jumped up, called me a ‘moron’, and punched me really hard in the jaw. 

“Then rushed off and suddenly took the towpath exit I’d just passed, which he clearly hadn’t intended taking beforehand as he’d been riding too fast for that. Whether he realised when I cried out at being punched that he’d actually hit an older woman, I’m not sure.

I almost immediately after being punched had really bad earache and headache on the opposite side of my head to the side which had been hit, and staggered back to the same exit myself with my bike (which fortunately seemed to have survived unscathed) and got on to the pavement of the road above the canal, sat down, and phoned the police. 

They were going to come immediately, and also asked some other body to contact me about possible medical care.”

But, after being told she might have to wait hours for an ambulance, Gillian decided to get back on her bike and continue her journey.

She said: “I cancelled the ambulance myself and decided to try cycling on, having seen that Salford hospital was close to the route  not much further on. 

“I still had really bad earache and knew I needed to get a medical assessment after such a heavy blow, but my symptoms hadn’t changed at all in the two hours I’d been sitting on the pavement waiting for something to happen.

“I cycled fairly slowly and felt better, and so decided to carry on slowly to Preston (another 20-odd miles) knowing the roads are fairly flat. 

“If I could get to Preston I could put my bike in the room I’d booked there and go and sit in A&E all night if needed .

“I Got to Preston, put bike in Premier Inn room, went to Preston hospital A&E.

“Then I had quite a few facial X-rays for a possible broken jaw and cheek bone, and various other assessments, and was finally told I could in fact resume the cycling the following day. 

“I resumed the ride, complete with bruising on the jaw.”

The 855 mile journey was to raise money to send children living on rubbish dumps in Kenya to school.