John Townsend

This year my wife is doing 40 challenges before she is 40, on Sunday 29 September she will be doing the London Bridges Challenge. I have decided to join her, the event is in aid of Diabetes UK. We will walk 10 miles, cross 12 of London's finest bridges and join the fight for a world where diabetes can do no harm.

There is no minimum sponsorship requirement, so I have set myself a target that feels achievable, a target of £120, that’s just £10 per bridge. The easiest way for me to collect sponsorship is to do it via a Just Giving page (CLICK HERE), this way you can make a quick, safe online donation to support my challenge. The money I raise will then transfer straight to Diabetes UK.

I absolutely love cycling this route, I have done it many times before, but never for fun. Every time I have ridden this route, the aim was to get from A-B as fast as possible. This time around, I want to take my time and do it over two days.  The Trans Pennine Trail (TPT) is an exciting route for cyclists, linking the North and Irish seas, passing through the Pennines, alongside rivers and canals and through some of the most historic towns and cities in the North of England. You can view my route below.

I have completed this route before, but last time nearly killed me. This time I want to do it faster & more efficient, this route will be the perfect test of my fitness, ready for my epic National Three Peaks Challenge. It will also allow me to test out my bike and kit set up.

I have set this route up on my Strava account, as a running event, as it will take me more of road, and on to more dirt roads and running tracks, allowing my bike to have a full work out. This will be a good test for when I hit Scotland, as I've been informed that I need to be ready for anything. You can view my route below.

I'm calling this adventure summer madness because, well you will see. Like most people, I get very limited holiday time. With three routes on my mind, I couldn't decided which one to undertake. So in the end, I decided to do all three, starting with the Shakespeare way. I will be cycling this route with my wife, before taking on the M25 Cycle Route with my good friend Baz, then I will be heading to Scotland on the over night train, to take on The North Coast 500.  The North coast 500, is one of the world’s most iconic coastal touring routes. You can view my routes below.