Peter Warner, 64, of Great Cornard, takes on Land’s End to John O’Groats cycle ride for St Helena Hospice and Alzheimer's Society

A 64-year-old man is cycling 1,407 kilometres from Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise money for two charities close to his heart.

Peter Warner, 64, of Great Cornard, near Sudbury, began his 14-day ride on Sunday in memory of his sister-in-law Wendy, who died of bowel cancer.

His cycling effort is raising funds for St Helena Hospice which cared for Wendy in her final weeks.

Now five days into the challenge, Peter is also pedalling for Alzheimer’s Society in tribute to his mother Betty and father-in-law Brian, who both lived with dementia.

Andrew Osbourne, 35, Peter’s future son-in-law, joined him for the first two days of the ride and admitted he was completely exhausted after clocking up 148 miles.

“I can only imagine how tired Peter will be by the end,” Andrew said. “I was completed exhausted after two days, so I really don’t know how he’s doing it — it’s incredible.

“He’s been training really hard for it and I know it’s something he’s really wanted to do.

“As a family, we’re all unbelievably proud of him for taking this on.”

Peter, a retired Fleet and Engineering Manager of Essex Fire and Rescue Service, is being supported on his journey by his wife Jo, who’s travelling alongside in their campervan to keep him fuelled with the right food and drink for the challenge.

Tackling the iconic ride has long been on Peter’s bucket list and he’s hoping to raise £3,000 for his two chosen charities. So far, he has raised £2,641.

Peter said: “The lejog has been on my bucket list for years and what better way to get motivated than to give something back.

“The two charities do such amazing work. It's great to do my small bit to help.

“It's 14 days of hardship I'm putting myself through, but the wonderful medical staff, carers, administrative staff and volunteers go that extra mile every single day to support sufferers and their families — they're the true heroes in this story.”

Donations can be made by clicking here.

Peter’s journey, and his ‘Dad joke of the day’ from his bike, are also being documented on instagram under the handle @pedalforpounds — which you can follow here.

After starting the challenge together, Andrew plans to rejoin Peter in Scotland for the final stretch to the finish line.

He added: “Peter is such a positive man and he never grumbled or moaned once while we cycled together.

“I really hope we can all get behind him to help him reach his fund-raising goal.”