TWO women are feeling saddle-sore but proud after cycling more than 100 miles coast-to-coast across Devon to raise funds in memory of a brave young woman who died of cancer.

Emma Dooley and Hannah Walters raised £676 for Brain Tumour Research with their 15-hour ride from Plymouth to Ilfracombe and back to Torrington, a distance of 103 miles.

The friends, who first met at Tavistock Triathlon Club, undertook their epic cycle on Saturday, July 15 in memory of 19-year-old Holly Dunn of Bere Alston, who died in May.

Holly was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour in January last year and underwent chemotherapy and radiotherapy but in early May doctors told her family there was no more they could do.

Emma, who lives in Bere Alston, decided to do the ride in support of Holly’s parents Sally and Gary and her sister. She is friends with Holly’s mother Sally through the Bere Alston Trekkers running club.

‘We wanted to show the family that we were there for them,’ said Emma. ‘Seeing what they had been through made me want to do something to help. A number of people at the running club are doing things to raise money for brain tumour research and Sally herself ran the London Marathon.

‘When I discovered that only one per cent of money raised goes to brain tumour research, I thought that was pretty awful and that we should do our bit to help.

‘We are raising awareness that brain tumours are more common than people think and can happen to young people like Holly. And we wanted to make people aware of how little money goes into brain tumour research.’

She and Hannah, from Kingsbridge in South Devon, undertook a challenging route from Plymouth to Ilfracombe via Dartmouth, on the Devon coast-to-coast cycle route. Setting off early from Plymouth’s Lockyers Quay, they were at Torrington by lunchtime and reached Ilfracombe and had their photograph taken in front of Damien Hirst’s ‘pregnant lady’ statue, Verity, by late afternoon.

They got as far back along the route as Torrington when, with night beginning to fall, they called it a day and Emma’s husband picked them and their bikes up.

The route took in the scenic Granite Way between Lydford Gorge and Okehampton, and the Tarka Trail between Barnstaple and Ilfracombe. There was also a fair amount of puffing up steep hills on the roads.

‘It was hard work but really scenic,’ said Emma. ‘I do believe someone was watching over us, though, because as we cycled from Plymouth towards Okehampton all we could see were black clouds hovering over the moor. But the rain held off for us all day. When we got to Barnstaple, everywhere was soaked but we totally missed it.’

They had support from Evans Cycles in Plymouth, who serviced their bikes at the start, and Torrington Cycles, who changed a slow puncture for Emma mid route. Along the way they met well-wishers who cheered on their efforts.

‘The guy that changed the tyre for us for free said he had a friend who died from a brain tumour, which is really sad,’ she said. ‘We met some lovely people on the way who were really supportive, and a couple of friends who came out to join us and met us at the Flying Puffin at Torrington when we were having lunch.’

Throughout the ride, she carried a photo of Holly in her saddle bag. ‘Every time we got tired and stopped along the route I could look at that, so she kept me going,’ she said. ‘The total elevation was 8,000 feet, so there were a lot of hills. Whatever happened, though, we were not going to give up.’

l The picture below shows Hannah Walters (left) and Emma Dooley on their coast-to-coast cycle in memory of 19-year-old Holly Dunn.