X Factor winner Sam Bailey insists she is not short of motivation as she gears up for the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 on Sunday.
Bailey is no stranger to putting herself in the firing line, the then prison officer at HM Prison Gartree going on to be crowned the winner of series ten of the X Factor in 2013.
But her latest challenge might be even more nerve-racking with the 38-year-old joining sports stars Jonathan Edwards, Darren Gough and Sally Gunnell as part of Team Telegraph who will join a field of more than 25,000 riders who are taking on the challenge of the 100-mile challenge on Sunday.
And while Bailey admits she might be more at home standing on a stage rather than sitting on a saddle, she is determined to complete the famous event.
“It was a moment of madness. Someone said to me, ‘would I like to do it?’ and I thought, you know what, I have achieved so much in the last couple of years,” she said.
“I never thought for a second that I would get as far as I did on the X Factor so I just thought I would give it a go.
“It is way out of my comfort zone, it is something I would never normally agree to do so I am just hoping to do well and enjoy it.
“At the minute I don’t even know if I am going to finish but I am determined to do it and I am quite head strong so we will see how we do.
“I told my daughter that I would be doing the bike ride and she said to me how long is it and I said, ‘it is like mummy riding to London from Leicester’ and she was shocked and said, ‘you’re not going to do that’.
“But that has given me more of a push and I just want to prove to my kids that you can achieve anything if you know how.
“I think the crowd will keep me going. If people are out there watching and see me go past just tell me to get my butt moving and carry on going, that is all I want people to do.
“A lot of things have happened in the last month and I just want to stay focused. I have lost three people to cancer over the last month and as well as doing the ride for the charity Scope which is a great cause, I am also doing it for Cancer Research as well.
“That is more of an incentive to do it because I want to do it for them, the charities and myself.”
Celebrating the legacy for cycling created by the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 starts in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, then follows a 100-mile route on closed roads through the capital and into Surrey’s stunning countryside.
With leg-testing climbs and a route made famous by the world’s best cyclists at the London 2012 Olympics, it’s a truly spectacular event for all involved, and one Bailey is keen for more and more people to enjoy with the benefits clear for all to see.
“A fit and healthy lifestyle is definitely important, particularly for kids because technology is taking over,” she added. “My son spends a lot of time on his computer and playing games and I push for him to come outside and do something energetic.
“But I have seen more and more children riding bikes in the last couple of years and it has really had an impact on young children.
“My daughter especially loves to go out with me on bike rides so we go out together and just show that you don’t have to be the best because I certainly won’t be.
“You can achieve anything if you put your mind to it and that is what I want to prove by doing this.”
Prudential RideLondon takes place on 1-2 August 2015. Prudential is proud to support people’s ambitions. Visit www.pru.co.uk
