Record-breaking cyclist to take on 'most ambitious challenge yet'
Scott Mitchell, 47, cycled through all 48 English counties of England in just eight days in 2023, setting a new Guinness World Record.
Scott, from Endmoor, is now determined to visit all the counties in the UK on his bike in just 15 days, riding at around 170 miles (275km) a day.
READ MORE: Kendal: pop-up cafe will raise money for restoration of schoolroom
The dad-of-two has described the ride as his 'most ambitious challenge yet' and is inspired by his son Alex, 24, who has lived with his diagnosis of Becker Muscular Dystrophy since he was 14.
Family and friends, including Scott's son Alex, at 2023's record-breaking challenge (Image: Rob Ree) Scott said: "As Alex has got older, his needs have increased and with that, the whole house is in need of further alterations and adaptions in order to help him try and live as normal a life as possible.
"He's now got to the stage where he often cannot stand up, simply due to the muscle weakness, and this is a trend which will continue to impact on him as it develops further.
READ MORE: Cumbria Soaring Club launches 2025 community grant scheme
"It's heartbreaking. We're even investigating the possibility of an exoskeleton, but these, should they be suitable, are up to £100,000 - money we simply don't have"
"Simply getting off the loo is a struggle that none of us have to even consider - but it's a factor, along with every single aspect in Alex's life.
Record-breaking Scott Mitchell (Image: Scott Mitchell) "This Crowdfunder has a target of £10,000 and is to not only to help maximise fundraising for Alex, but others like him, who need many additional things to operate in life - these include manual wheelchairs, powered wheelchairs, adaptations to houses and adaptations to cars".
Westmorland Gazette readers can subscribe for just £5 for 5 months
"I fully expect this to be my biggest challenge to date, but I'm choosing to put myself through this - Alex has to endure this, just to try and get by each day."
Scott's challenge has required meticulous planning, from nightly accommodation to ferry connections for the more remote regions.
The 'Cycle the Nation' route (Image: Scott Mitchell) The 'Cycle the Nation' route includes mainland Britain, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Wight, Shetland, Orkney and the Hebrides.
Alongside the physical and logistical demands, the dad-of-two continues to work full-time while preparing for the journey, and training around 25 hours a week.
He will not do it alone this time however, as now he will be accompanied by a rather unusual companion.
READ MORE: Kendal: Heron Hill residents visited by former racehorses | The Westmorland Gazette
"A custom-painted Warhammer Space Marine model will join me through each county," Scott said.
"He was created by YouTuber 'Drunk on Tea' in the colours of Muscular Dystrophy UK.
"The figure will be mounted on my bike for the full journey - possibly making it the first Warhammer model to travel the length and breadth of the UK!
"At the end of the ride, it will be auctioned off, with the YouTuber also donating all advertising revenue from the painting video too."
The model has been given the name 'Cyclus Minor'.
'Cyclus Minor' who will be joining Scott on his journey (Image: Scott Mitchell) Scott's mammoth journey begins in Cornwall on Saturday, May 24, finishing in Kirkby Lonsdale on Saturday, June 7, and will contribute to research aimed at finding a cure, with an estimated 70,000 to 100,000 people in the UK living with similar conditions to Alex.
Supporters can follow Scott's next journey and contribute to the fundraising via his official Crowdfunder page.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
40 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Alex Bregman's two-run home run (13)
Alex Bregman hits a two-run home run to left field to give the Red Sox a 4-3 lead over the Dodgers in the bottom of the 5th inning

NBC Sports
2 hours ago
- NBC Sports
2025 Women's EURO Final player ratings: Who delivered in England vs Spain?
A thrilling 120 minutes led to the tension of penalties at a major final, where Spain and England mixed it up for the 2025 Women's EURO crown. MORE — England vs Spain recap, as it happened Who were the stars from this affair? Read on... England player ratings vs Spain at Women's EURO Final Hannah Hampton: 8.5 — Four saves and 11 recoveries. Had no hope on the goal and was brilliant in penalty kicks. Alex Greenwood: 6 — Good going forward although her long passes were more hopeful than not on several occasions. Jessica Carter: 7 — Decent with the ball as England's left side was under duress all day. Leah Williamson: 7.5 — Nearly perfect on the ball while racking up near 20 defensive actions. Certainly the top English defender on the day. Lucy Bronze (Off 106'): 6.5 — She was fantastic in implementing Wiegman's physical tactics, but she loses a point for allowing Caldentey to waltz onto a header for Spain's first goal. Keira Walsh: 6.5 — England lost the midfield battle but both Walsh and Stanway were resolute throughout. Georgia Stanway (Off 115'): 6.5 — See Walsh's description above. Stanway and Walsh were a combined 11-of-24 in the duel. Guijarro was 12-of-16. Ella Toone (On 87'): 6 — The Man United midfielder created a chance but was otherwise quiet. Lauren Hemp: 6 — Had a huge chance go missing. Put herself into the battles but second-best on a lot of them. Lauren James (Off 41'): 6 — Quiet day with a couple of good defensive interventions before an injury called time on her final. Alessia Russo (Off 71'): 7 — Largely starved of the ball but quite efficient; Her airborne header between two starring defenders was so well-spun home. Subs Chloe Kelly (On 41'): 7 — Two created chances and two shots to go along with the assist. One-dimensional on the day as Spain controlled what was behind her. Michelle Agyemang (On 71'): 6.5 — At the center of the physical fight, with a combined five fouls committed and suffered over her 50(ish) minutes. Beth Mead (On 87'): N/A Niamh Charles (On 106'): N/A — One terrific intervention in her short shift almost gives her a huge rating. Grace Clinton (On 115'): N/A ENGLAND HAS LEVELED IT!! 😱🏴 Alessia Russo scores the equalizer for the Lionesses! 💪 Spain player ratings vs England at Women's EURO Final Catalina Coll: 7.5 — No one with human arms was going to get to Russo's header, and the in-tight save on Hemp early kept things scoreless. Solid in penalties Olga Carmona (Off 106'): 7 — As quiet a day as possible while racking up triple-digit touches. Nothing bad. Laia Aleixandri: 7 — Both Aleixandri and Paredes were Player of the Match caliber aside from the England equalizer when Russo found her way between them for her header. It was a brilliant header of a terrific cross, to be fair. Irene Paredes: 7 — See Aleixandri. Ona Batile: 8 — Fantastic. Assisted the goal and won almost every duel. Yes she was the closest to Kelly's cross on England's equalizer but she also could've easily had the match-winning assist at the end of the first extra time period. Alexia Putellas (Off 71'): 7 — Solid if unspectacular from the 31-year-old living legend. Aitana Bonmati: 7 — Three created chances, four shot attempts, and a half-dozen or so notable defensive moments. Patricia Guijarro: 8 — Unsure if she lost a 50/50. Athenea del Castillo (Off 89'): 7 — She cued up Batile's run/assist on Spain's goal, and at the time of her substitution her 19 touches in the opposing box were 14 higher than the second-most player. Mariona Caldentey: 7.5 — The goal was great and she could've had 2-3 by the time this was settled in Switzerland. Esther Gonzalez (Off 89'): 5 — Bottled up, the forward managed just 20 touches in 89 minutes. Subs Claudia Pina (On 71'): 7 — Helped Spain's left side become just as dangerous as its right. Vicky Lopez (On 89'): 6.5 — Got into so many dangerous positions but missed all of her chances. Salma Paralluelo (On 89'): 6 — Couldn't bury a winner inside the six during stoppage time in the first period of extra time. Leila Ouahabi (On 106'): N/A


San Francisco Chronicle
4 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Lottie Woad, a former Florida State star, wins the Women's Scottish Open in her pro debut
IRVINE, Scotland (AP) — Lottie Woad tapped in one final birdie, plucked the ball out of the cup and gave a simple wave to the crowd as if she had done this before. The English star made it look easy Sunday when she won the Women's Scottish Open in her professional debut. Woad never flinched when Hyo Joo Kim made a charge on a windy day at Dundonald Links, closing with a 4-under 68 for a three-shot victory. Woad is the second player in three years to win on the LPGA Tour in her pro debut, following Rose Zhang in the Mizuho Americas Open at Liberty National in 2023. Woad finished at 21-year 267 and earned $300,000. 'I think it's quite hard to do that, but very special to win in my first event,' Woad said. 'Everyone was chasing me today, and managed to maintain the lead and played really nicely down the stretch and hit a lot of good shots.' Kim had opened with four birdies in seven holes, and when the South Korean added birdies on the 11th and 12th, she shared the lead with Woad. Woad was unflappable, making birdie on the 13th and 14th holes to regain control and dropping only one shot late in her round. She finished with a three-quarter wedge over a winding burn to 2 feet for birdie and a reserved celebration. Her victory is certain to get everyone's attention in women's golf. Woad was the No. 1 amateur in the women's ranking when she won the Women's Irish Open on the Ladies European Tour three weeks ago. Then, she finished one shot out of a playoff in the Evian Championship in France, an LPGA major. That gave her enough points for an LPGA card, so the 21-year-old decided to forgo her final year at Florida State and turn pro. Now she has an LPGA title — the Women's Scottish Open is co-sanctioned with the LET — as she heads south for Royal Porthcawl in Wales for the final major of the year in the Women's British Open. Nelly Korda, who played the opening three rounds with Woad, ran off four straight birdies on the front nine until missing some putts that stalled her momentum. She shot 71 and finished eight shots behind, leaving the American winless this year after a seven-win season in 2024. Julia Lopez Ramirez closed with a 65 and tied for third with Sei Young Kim (73), earning the Spaniard one of three spots available in the Women's British Open next week. The other spots went to Paula Reto of South Africa and Mary Liu of China. Woad first made a name for herself when she won the Augusta National Women's Amateur last year with birdies on three of the last four holes. She said that was more pressure than she felt in her pro debut. 'I think Augusta, that was the biggest tournament I played in at the time and was kind of my big win,' Woad said. 'So definitely felt the pressure of it more there, and I felt like all those experiences helped me with this.' The only difference this week was getting paid for it. Along with winning the Women's Irish Open, Woad tied for 31st in the U.S. Women's Open this year and tied for 10th in the Women's British Open at St. Andrews last summer. She heads to Wales hopeful of keeping the momentum. 'It's been pretty good, yeah. I don't really know how to describe it,' Woad said. 'Just been shooting low scores, which is always nice.' ___