A BUCKLAND Monachorum cyclist has recently returned from a sponsored bike ride from John O?Groats to Land?s End.
Joe Reid says he expects the final total raised for Children in Need by the ride to be between £400 and £500. Joe, a formal pupil of Buckland Monachorum Church of England Primary School, undertook the cycle ride with Bristol University friend Darryl Chiles.
The pair set out from Land?s End and arrived at John O?Groats eleven days later, having averaged around 80 miles and seven or eight hours in the saddle each day.
?It was fantastic. It was hard work, but we had a following wind and only one day of rain.
?Lots of people said we wouldn?t be able to do it because it was the middle of winter,? he said. But he was determined to complete the challenge as cycling the length of the country was something he had wanted to do for a long time.
Joe said the slowest progress was made north of the border towards the end of the 900-mile ride, as there were fewer daylight hours and more minor roads in Scotland. Setting off each day at around 7.30am, the pair reached Edinburgh within a week.
Joe said he had great help from James and Derek at Dartmoor Cycles in Tavistock in preparation for the ride. His training consisted of a couple of 40 to 50-mile rides.