Business leaders get on their bikes for 500-mile charity ride

A team of 40 Highland business leaders are getting on their bikes to take part in one of the world’s toughest charity cycle rides in aid of a local cancer charity.

Next month’s Maggie’s 500 event will see participants cycle 500 miles over five days.

They’ll take in some of the area’s highest roads, including Glenshee, The Lecht and the Cairngorms.

Organisers hope to raise more than £200,000 for the local Maggie’s Centre and say it’s great to regroup after the pandemic forced them to postpone the challenge last year.

Andrew Benjamin from Maggie’s Highlands said: “The event idea came about from Willie Gray from the business community in the Highlands who wanted to raise some money for Maggies.

“We wanted to do a challenging cycle and challenging it is, by taking 500 miles over five days across some of the toughest terrain in the Highlands.”

Willie Gray added: “I’ve never seen such determination in the folk that are taking part.

“The cyclists have been mind blowing, they’ve just dug in and got on with it.

“We’ve been cycling in sleet, we’ve been cycling in snow, we’ve been on turbo trainers, we’ve trained in lockdown, we trained in pairs when you weren’t able to go out in groups.”