THE assistant manager of a Northallerton charity is preparing for a gruelling cycle ride to help raise money for an expensive piece of new equipment.

The existing stick-chopping machine at Chopsticks, in Springwell Lane, is 60 years old and, according to assistant manager Mike Palfreman, its performance constitutes a bottleneck in the production of firewood.

Chopsticks offers work activities and training to people with learning disabilities who every week convert five tonnes of scrap timber into packaged firewood for delivery to coal merchants and retailers.

A new conveyor belt given to Chopsticks by the Tetley tea bag factory at Stockton will enable the charity to set up a second production line, for which a new stick-chopping machine will be needed alongside the existing one.

Mr Palfreman and seven friends from Manchester are planning a cycle ride of about 550 miles across part of Europe in 18 days to raise money for the new stick-chopper.

Mr Palfreman, of Northallerton, is financing the venture himself and every penny of the sponsorship money he and his friends receive will go towards the machine.

They leave on Thursday and their route will take them from Biarritz, France and deep into Spain.

He said: ""I'm cycling to work as part of my training and trying to build up some sort of fitness, but according to the books I've read, no matter what training you do in England nothing can prepare you for the steepness there."

"There are also extremes of temperature, ranging from about 40C during the day to sub-zero conditions in the mountains at night, so we have to carry enough warm clothes with us.

"But it's a challenge and I'm trying to be pretty positive about it."