Fundraising Ferring friends to cycle D-Day beaches to mark 80th anniversary of Normandy landings

It will be no easy task, as Colin Brown, 68, and Gareth Hearn, 65, have significant issues with their knees, so the 350-mile ride will be a big challenge for them.

Retiree Colin is familiar with long rides and cycling sponsorship, while Gareth, an engineering geomorphologist, describes himself as a casual Sunday cyclist.

They have been friends and near neighbours for nearly three years and Colin's experience gave Gareth the impetus to pursue his dream. He has previously completed five sponsored bike rides and had been considering something on a larger scale for some time.

Colin said: “We chose to do the ride for Help for Heroes, because it is the 80th anniversary of D-Day. There are other organisations, but Help for Heroes is the charity that resonates with most people, I think.”

Colin’s father, John Brown, was a Royal Engineer, serving with the Gurkhas in Burma and India during the Second World War. His grandfather, Andrew Brown, fought with the Gordon Highlanders from 1915 but died in October 1918, at Iwuy, in northern France, a month before the Armistice.

Gareth's two grandfathers both fought in the First World War. Reginald Charles Hearn was wounded at the Battle of Marne and George Jenkins played a key role in the Navy, on minesweeper duty around the British Isles.

Gareth said: “I have always felt pride in the way the forefathers of our nation fought for our freedom, and the tremendous sacrifices they made, in both world wars.

"The 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings is such an important milestone in our history, and we want to contribute whatever we can. Raising money for our former Armed Forces personnel is one way we can help.”

The six-day ride will begin in Ferring on May 27. Initially, Colin and Gareth planned to cycle from Ferring to Newhaven, take the ferry to Dieppe and cycle west via the Normandy beaches before crossing from Cherbourg to Portsmouth and back to Ferring. But they discovered that could prove tough, with strong prevailing westerly winds, so they have reversed the route, hoping the wind would be behind them.

Sarah Whattam, Help for Heroes’ senior fundraising manager, said: “The challenges our fundraisers set themselves never fail to astound me. We are, naturally, delighted that Colin and Gareth have chosen to support the charity in this way and thank them for their efforts. Let’s hope that wind stays firmly in their backs.”

Visit www.justgiving.com/page/gen24-107186411-1 to donate to the Ferring to Ferring via Portsmouth, the Normandy Beaches and Newhaven fundraising effort.

Help for Heroes champions the Armed Forces community and helps them live well after service. The charity helps veteran families to recover and get on with their lives. It has already supported more than 31,000 people and won’t stop until every veteran gets the support they deserve.

The charity supports veteran families from any branch of the UK military, regulars or reserves, irrespective of length or place of service, and locally-embedded civilians (and their families) who worked under the command of UK Armed Forces.