A SOUTH Lakeland man has completed an epic cycling challenge and raised more than £3,000 for charity.

Stuart Taylor, the co-owner of Kirkby Lonsdale Brewery and The Royal Barn, conquered the French Divide which involved pedalling for 2,275 kilometres in a maximum 15 days.

It is a ‘bike packing’ adventure on the mountain biking roads of France, following part of the route of St Jacques de Compostelle. He completed the challenge in 11 days and 19 hours - finishing 16th out of 138 entrants.

Stuart also completed the Highland Trail 550 over four days in the summer. His epic challenges have all been in aid of a personal cause, raising money for Leeds Cancer Centre Charity in memory of his good friend, Steven Hopley, who died recently.

His original fundraising goal was £1,000, and his final total target has now been confirmed at £3,042.

“The toughest part of the French Divide was that it was much more of a mental game," said Stuart. "In the early days, riding for up to 20 hours a day on pretty much the same terrain, some days with very little change in scenery, it was hard to stimulate my mind and keep myself engaged.

"It was an amazing route and ride, but it was definitely a case of mind over matter.

“The freak heatwave slowed me down. I was aiming for 220km each day, but during those two days when the heat was awful I only managed 150km which meant I essentially lost a day and would’ve finished in 10 days which was my aim, so that was a little disappointing.

“For me, it wasn’t an option not to finish so that wasn’t a worry, but little things played on my mind like the extra kit I was carrying and the fact I had plugged my tubeless tyre before the start instead of buying a new one.

"I must have squeezed and checked that tyre three or four times a day every day to check it was staying up. Little things escalate into bigger issues, and while your head needs to be clear, the length of time you’re on the bike gives plenty of room to drive yourself mad.

“After approximately 700 miles, at around halfway, my pedal bearings collapsed, causing the pedal to come off leaving only the spindle.

"I ended up replacing it with a cheap plastic flat pedal from an old farmer’s bike, resulting in one foot clipped in and one not. "Mentally knowing I was going to complete the event made me embrace this and made me more determined to use it as a challenge. When things got tough, the fundraising was a bit of inspiration to me."