Rider to take on ‘The Rake’

●● Richard Burt on his bike and (inset) with mum Peggy A 62-YEAR-OLD man is to take on one of Ramsbottom’s hardest cycling routes as part of a campaign to break a cycling record and raise £50,000 for a dementia charity in honour of his mother.

Richard Burt, who started cycling just four years ago when Bradley Wiggins became the first Brit to win the Tour De France, is taking on the gruelling challenge of completing 100 of the UK’s toughest cycling climbs in just 12 days.

Supported by Sanctuary Care, Richard hopes to raise £50,000 for Dementia UK on behalf of his mum Peggy, who has had Alzheimer’s for the past six years and is living with dementia in a care home.

Richard said: “This challenge is extremely personal for me – it’s all for my mum, who is a wonderful person.

“When I visit I’m sometimes her dad, sometimes I’m her husband or sometimes I’m her son but it doesn’t matter to me, it’s enough for me to know she loves me and that’s why I’m doing this for her.”

On day 10 of the journey, Saturday, August 27, Richard will take on ‘The Rake’ in Ramsbottom, notorious for hosting one of the Britain’s shortest but most gruelling cycle races.

The route follows the road leading from the centre of Ramsbottom up to Holcombe village, and has a lung-bursting gradient of one in four near the top.

Richard will then attempt a further 27 cycles to complete his 100.