Ken Day

I have received the very sad news that Ken Day died yesterday, at home with his family.   Ken was a regular rider with the Wayfarers over many years and perhaps even longer riding with the Cheam and Morden, often with his son Paul.   He was a very accomplished racer and rider and a captivating story-teller, having toured in some of the world’s most inhospitable places, including Iran and the Himalayas.   Despite his many achievements in cycling and at work (chemical engineering in oil refineries) he remained a quiet, humble man, but his natural enthusiasm could be sparked by a question on a topic that interested him.   I remember a lengthy and animated discussion resulting from a simple question “what does octane mean?”

In the last few years Ken’s health suffered, first with untreatable prostate cancer and later with Parkinson’s disease and diabetes.   He also suffered a complicated ankle injury when a driver drove into him while he was cycling.  Despite all this he was determined to keep cycling as long as possible, riding an e-bike for the last few years until his doctors told him very clearly that he must give up cycling.

Cycling in Ladakh, in the Himalayas

Many in the club will have fond memories of riding and conversing with Ken and he will be very much missed.  We send our condolences to his wife Maggie and their family.

Funeral details are not yet known but will be posted later.