Determined 12-year-old boy from Garstang cycles over 100 miles for charity

Alec Birchall cycled 101 miles in stages over six weeks and he raised £230 for the charity from which his family had adopted their cat, Willow.

He completed the challenge as part of Ripley St Thomas CE Academy’s Archbishop of York Award scheme which encourages pupils to organise and take part in projects to benefit their local community.

Ripley is 101 miles from Alec’s former primary school just south of York where the family lived until 2020 – hence the distance chosen for his challenge.

Unfortunately, just a few weeks after moving, the family cat died and in 2022 they decided to rehome a kitten from Animal Care after hearing how many pets were being abandoned post the Covid pandemic.

Alec began his challenge in the May half-term and the longest stage he completed was around 11 miles long with shorter rides in between. Most of the rides, where he was accompanied by his dad, Simeon, were in the countryside near his home in Catterall and there were also a couple along the promenade in Morecambe.

“I didn’t realise what a challenge this was going to be but Alec’s really proud of himself and was excited to present his fundraising money to Animal Care,” said mum, Katharine.

Alec’s cycling skills and his experience should come in handy when he begins triathlete training this weekend. He already swims four times a week with Blackpool Aquatics.