Our first charity is the Motor Neurone Disease Association, MNDA, a fantastic charity that provides care and support to those affected by this terminal condition and strives to find a cure. MND is a cruel condition where the motor neurones in your brain that communicate with the muscles in your body stop working, leading to muscle wastage. As the disease progresses your body slowly stops functioning. You might recognise the disease and its symptoms from the late physicist Stephen Hawking or Rugby League player Rub Burrow. At any one time it affects up to 5,000 adults in the UK and the cause is currently unknown.

Within the team we know firsthand how exceptional the work done by MNDA is. In 2009 Foggy’s Nan was diagnosed with the disease and sadly passed away in August 2010. It started with the loss of movement in her left foot, but over time her condition worsened. Like many, she lost her mobility, her speech deteriorated and towards the end she lost the ability to swallow food. In time Foggy will tell you more about his Nan and her condition, but in the meantime any donations to this cause would go a long way to supporting those currently affected and would mean a great deal to the team. Keep an eye on the Instagram/Facebook for updates and if you want to find out more about the work they do, please visit https://www.mndassociation.org/.

After a two-year absence, we’re making a return to the wheels for a new cycling adventure. Its one we’ve been considering for a while now – cycling from John O’Groats to Lands End. Fifteen days and 1100 miles this summer to test our fitness and endurance against the full length of Great Britain. Just like our last route, we will attempt to cycle without a support vehicle, carrying our belongings unsupported. For most of the Scottish section, we will camp along our route, before staying with family and friends who have kindly offered to assist us along the way.

Our chosen route will take in the barren Northwest Highlands before passing through Inverness and the Cairngorms to cross the Forth Road Bridge and arrive in Edinburgh. We will follow the coast towards Northumberland and Newcastle, before passing through Yorkshire and the Dales to reach Sheffield, hopefully on Foggy’s 21st birthday. The route cuts through the Midlands to reach Oxford, before we turn towards the West Country. The route concludes with a four day campaign through the steep hills and windy roads between Bristol and Lands End.

You can follow our progress on the 5hombres1000miles page on Instagram and facebook. This year, we have decided to support two charities, which you can read more about below. Any donation to either cause would mean a lot to us, and all support is greatly appreciated by the team.

Thank you for all your support!