Couple’s epic bike challenge for Great North Air Ambulance Service

A couple from Gainford are taking on an ambitious 550-mile tandem bike ride from London to Edinburgh to support the Great North Air Ambulance Service.

Richard Roff, 57, and Mary Anne Roff, 60, who share a love of cycling, are embarking on what they’ve dubbed the Great North Ride, to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary and Mary Anne’s 60th birthday.

Mr Roff said: “Our first joint purchase as a couple was our mountain bike tandem, so a tandem ride felt like the right thing to do.”

The journey will follow the historic Great North Road connecting England and Scotland, and is significant for the couple as Richard was born in the North East, while Mary Anne was born in Edinburgh.

Her first job was in St Martin’s le Grand at the start of the Great North Road.

Many of their friends and family live on or near the route, including London, Stamford, Yorkshire, the North East and Edinburgh, so they hope some of them will join in for parts of the ride or be able to share a drink or meal with them.

While the couple have many years’ cycling experience, this will be their first endurance challenge and they chose to support GNAAS as an air ambulance came to their daughter’s aid.

“We are enormously grateful that an air ambulance rescued our daughter after an accident when she was very young.

“GNAAS is our local air ambulance and we want to help ensure that it can continue to save lives across our region.”

Ahead of their ride, Richard and Mary Anne visited the charity’s headquarters, where they met members of the critical care team and learned more about the organisation’s operations.

Mrs Roff said: “It was very interesting to learn about how GNAAS delivers its services and we were impressed by their facility and by all the people that we met.”

The couple will begin their journey later this month.

“We intend to prove that we are not too old for a challenge like this,” they added.

The couple have set themselves a target of raising £5,000 and anyone who wants to sponsor them can visit their JustGiving page: justgiving.com/page/greatnorthride.