FROME man Nigel Arbury is embarking on his latest ground-breaking double challenge walking from Westminster to Bath.
This challenge is to raise funds for the Bath Cancer Unit Support Group's appeal to buy a Positron Scanner for the Royal United Hospital.
Mr Arbury is walking the 160 miles from the Houses of Parliament in Westminster to the RUH.
The route follows the River Thames to Reading and then proceeds along the Kennett and Avon Canal to Bath. The catch is that Mr Arbury has set himself a maximum of 48 hours to complete the task.
The 51-year-old has already walked from Westminster to Devizes to check the route and has confirmed that there will not be any time to stop for a rest along the way.
Not being someone who does things by halves, Mr Arbury has challenged two of his cycling friends Stuart Mardon, of Bath, and Tom Barnard, of Chippenham, to race him back.
Just to make it a little more interesting, the pair will cycle 250 miles on fixed-gear bikes only travelling during daylight hours.
Their route will follow the Thames Valley Cycle Route to Oxford, then on through Witney to Lechlade. They will then double back to Reading and carry on their journey along the Kennett and Avon.
Mr Mardon said: "There is an initial sense of trepidation; however on reflection it is a fantastic challenge and gives us both something to work and train towards.
"Initial analysis of the route shows that this will be a challenging one, especially on fixed-gear bikes.
"Both Tom and I have taken part in many charitable bike rides, however this one will certainly be this year's jewel in the crown."
The RUH will be the first district hospital in the country to get the latest Positron scanner that will transform the treatment of cancer.
The trio will set off at 1.30pm on Thursday, September 12, after enjoying a lunch at the Houses of Parliament hosted by Somerton and Frome MP David Heath.
Joining the send-off party will be John Carter, the chairman of the Bath Cancer Unit Support Group.
Don Foster, MP for Bath and vice-patron of the appeal, is supporting the challenge.
The participants aim to arrive at the RUH just before 1.30pm on Saturday, September 14, to a welcoming party led by the patron of the appeal, Mayor of Bath Malcolm Lees.
Heading the support team will be Martin Bax. This will be the 11th challenge that he has organised with Mr Arbury. The first was 16 years ago in April 1997, also for the Bath Cancer Unit Support Group, to raise money for a radiotherapy scanner.
Joining Mr Bax will be Les Drage, of Westbury, who was Mr Arbury's running partner on most of his previous challenges until a double hip operation prevented him from participating. His task now is to keep Mr Arbury company through the night.
His wife Heather, who is a staff nurse at the RUH, is also in the support team and joining from the original 1997 challenge is Simon Tozer, now living in Folkestone.
Completing the team is Amie Miller, of Frome, who along with the three challengers all work for Wilts Electrical Wholesalers of Trowbridge.
Wilts have agreed to sponsor all the transport and fuel required to complete the challenge. Cathryn Gallacher has agreed to be the official photographer.
To support the team visit www.virginmoneygiving.com/ westminsterchallenge
