THE Bude based mountain bike club, Dept 26, has recently finished their sponsored ride, raising money for Talan’s Journey and Cancer Research UK.

Starting in Minehead, Somerset, and finishing in Plymouth, the challenge was over 120 miles, with the team doing as much off-road riding as possible across Exmoor and Dartmoor until they reached their final destination.

Taking place on June 11 and 12, Dept 26 rode over 80 miles on the first day, and finished the challenge with over another 40 miles on the second day.

Shaun Courtenay, the chairman of Dept 26, said: “This is the first official fundraising event Dept 26 have done. Of course, we’ve donated money to charity through our club, but this is the first time we’ve raised money by ourselves.”

The club’s chosen charities were Cancer Research UK and Talan’s Journey, a cause that many people in Bude have been fundraising for.

Talan Penny is a young man from Bude who is currently being treated for a rare form of cancer called rhabdomyosarcoma.

Although Shaun is unable to finalise a total amount of money that was raised, the team have raised over £1,000 on their Just Giving page. As well as this, Dept 26 sold t-shirts and wrist bands in Bude, which Shaun hopes will add a great deal more to the already incredible fundraising amount.

Shaun added: “I am very, very proud of all of the team members. Everyone got through it okay, but it was really tough. It was probably one of the toughest things we’ve ever done as a group.”