Falmouth School teachers complete epic charity bike ride

Three teachers from Falmouth School have completed an epic bike ride from Land's End to John O'Groats, all in aid of a children's charity.

The brainchild of English teacher Imogen Dyckhoff, she was accompanied on the 874-mile journey by textiles teacher Kate Axten and geography teacher Sally Miles, who decided to join Imogen after a chance conversation over coffee one afternoon.

"Well I'd planned to do it at Easter, but I ended up buying a house so that took over for a while" said Imogen, " but Kate, Sally and myself were having coffee after school one day and I said how I'd like to do it. They said they'd like to join me, and went out and bought bikes the next week.

"We started training straight away."

And after completing barely two months of preparation, the tenacious trio set off from the southernmost tip of the UK on the long road to northern Scotland.

"It was pretty exhausting day after day," said Imogen, who described the ride as relentless, "but there was some amazing scenery and we've got lots of great memories from doing it.

"It was just beautiful, riding through Scotland next to the lochs and mountains," she added, "the lake district was beautiful too."

But the ride-of-a-lifetime wasn't all smooth going, as Imogen explained: "Going through the peaks we had this climb that seemed to go on forever. It was raining, and the hills seemed to be getting hillier.

"But then we got to the top and there was a rainbow and this amazing view. I suppose the views kept me going – and the cake, and the chocolate!"

It took the group an impressive thirteen days to complete the trip, but one particular day stands out: the moment the group reached the 700 mile mark.

"We were on a bridge between Wales and England," Imogen recalled, "literally on the middle of this bridge, and we stopped and took some photographs. I think at that point we all realised just how far we'd come."

The three friends raised over £2,500 for their chosen charity, Hope and Homes for Children, which is dedicated to finding loving homes for some of the world's poorest and most vulnerable children.

Asked whether it's something she'd do again, Imogen had no hesitation in answering:"Yes. Not necessarily Land's End to John O'Groats, but I'm always going to carry on cycling."

Anyone wishing to make a donation can still do so via Imogen's justgiving.com page - http://www.justgiving.com/Imogen-Dyckhoff 

http://www.hopeandhomes.org/