A CYCLIST presented a cancer charity with a cheque for £500 yesterday after completing a marathon cycle ride.

Bus driver Carl Thompson, 50, of Langley Park, raised £1 for each of the 500 miles of his recent cycling trip to Edinburgh and back.

After setting off from the Board Inn, Hilltop, in Esh, he travelled along the National Cycle Route network, including the Lanchester Valley Walk, and the Coast-to-Coast and Castles-to-Coast routes, on the eight-day adventure.

Mr Thompson said he enjoyed every minute of it.

"When I got to Edinburgh after four-and-a-half days, I felt quite good so I came back in three-and-a-half days," he said.

"I started off with camping gear, but it was too heavy, so my daughter met me at Seahouses and I gave it to her. After that, I went bed and breakfast. I had a wonderful time. It was great."

Mr Thompson, who cycles from Langley Park to Durham every day, chose Cancer Research UK as the beneficiary of the sponsorship money from the Edinburgh ride, after his father, Billy, died of cancer.

He presented the £500 cheque to representatives from the charity's Stanley branch, at the Board Inn.

Next year, he plans to embark on a 1,000-mile sponsored ride.