BMX bikers to ride from End To End

Thursday 3rd May 2012

Two cyclists are aiming to become the fastest duo to ride the length of the UK on BMX bikes.

Best mates Grant Borthwick and Ben Marvin have set off from Land's End destined for John O'Groats to raise £2,000 and awareness for Cyclists Fighting Cancer.

The challenge will be made trickier because the bikes are designed for stunts, have small wheels and only one gear.

Cyclists Fighting Cancer donates bikes, specially adapted trikes and tandems, to children and young people affected by cancer to encourage them to get active again.

Grant, 24, from West Wittering, Hampshire, is a yacht broker and keen athlete. Over the past few years he has been pushing himself in adventure races such as Spartan and Hell Runner, yacht races and completed the London Marathon in 2011.

Grant said: "We decided to do the classic Land's End to John O'Groats bike ride, but with a little twist. Both of us ride BMX, so the twist being that we intend covering the 950+ miles on these tiny bikes. One gear, one brake and small wheels."

Ben, 24, from Petersfield, Hampshire, will be on hand for any mechanical problems. He works for BMX company IMG Distribution as a technical consultant and at weekends works in bike shop Owens Cycles as a mechanic.

Mike Grisenthwaite, founder of Cyclists Fighting Cancer established the charity in 2005, five years after he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

He said: "It never ceases to amaze me what people are prepared to do for our charity, the BMX End To End is probably the most extreme to date, not just in terms of 960 mile route, but the pure physical punishment of riding without gears in such an awkward position for hours day after day is unimaginable, we are very grateful to Ben and Grant for their titanic effort."

To donate visit http://www.justgiving.com/BMXend2end.

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