Father of Afghanistan soldier organises charity bike ride

The father of a soldier who has served in Afghanistan has arranged a charity bike ride that will raise money for Help for Heroes.

Les Barratt, 61, has the cause close to his heart after son Captain Jon Barratt, a doctor with the Army, toured the Asian nation last year.

Mr Barratt explained it was only natural for him to feel incredibly worried about his son while he was in Afghanistan and, during this time, he was tasked with dealing with a number of injuries. Thankfully, none of the medical emergencies Captain Barratt attended turned out to be serious.

A charity bike ride in their home town of Beverley has now been set for October 13th and it will start from Longcroft School. People can choose from four distances – 160km, 100km, 60km and 30km. The latter is designed so that even novices can take part.

"Help For Heroes is such a fantastic cause and I want the people of Beverley to come together, whatever their cycling abilities, to have a fun day and raise a bit of money for charity," Mr Barratt said.

It is not the first time the father and son have been involved in cycling activities in order to raise money for charity. In June, they completed the Help for Heroes Dawn Raid Cycling Event, raising almost £2,000 in the process.

Mr Barratt has taken on board the advice of Hull Thursday Road Club in organising the next challenge and routes on the day will be marked out so that everyone who takes part can enjoy "some of the best roads Yorkshire has to offer".

Each person who takes on the cycling challenge will be asked to pay an entry fee of £20, or £10 if they are attempting the shortest route.

According to the organiser, a decent number of people have already entered the event, but plenty more are still needed to make it the success it can and hopefully will be.