Dunbar: Cyclist takes on mammoth 24-hour challenge for charity

Chris Lockett, the owner of Lockett Bros wine and whisky shop on North Berwick High Street, completed the challenge in aid of Leuchie House, raising more than £2,000.

Leuchie House, based near North Berwick, is Scotland's national respite centre, offering short stays and breaks for people living with neurological conditions such as motor neurone disease (MND).

Mark Bevan, Leuchie House CEO alongside Chris

The 45-year-old told the Courier that his motivation for the ride was quite simple.

He said: "I wanted to see how far I could go in 24 hours.

"Why not do it and raise some money for Leuchie, a charity I have always supported?"

Chris had originally planned the cycle for last year on the solstice, but an injury forced him to delay the ride until June this year.

Speaking of the challenge, he stressed that he did not do anything different in preparation for the ride.

He said: "It's in-built that I've got this endurance in my body that I can keep riding.

"The key was nutrition – it's amazing how many calories you can burn on a bike."

He added that across the ride he burned about 11,000 calories and was able to keep going with a combination of high-carb meals with protein and caffeine.

Chris completed the challenge by repeating the same 30-mile loop from his home in Dunbar, passing by Leuchie House, Haddington and Stenton before starting again.

He was riding constantly for 22-and-a-half hours, allowing an hour and a half for food stops and toilet breaks.

He added that Leuchie added a great touch by putting out a small table of fruit, juice and energy products to help keep him fuelled up each time he passed by.

Chris was able to rack up 366 miles in the 24 hours and was "delighted" at the figure as he was unsure what he was capable of reaching.

On the ride itself, Chris stressed that even though he ventured on the same route each time, every time was different.

He highlighted how magical the rides at night were.

He said: "The night-time was the most enjoyable. It was the longest day, so seeing the sun go down was special."

He added that encountering the East Lothian wildlife on his rides contributed to making these moments even better.

Despite the momentous amount of miles covered, Chris still felt fresh the next day and was back at work as usual.

He said: "I had to work the next day! But I managed it as I was on quite a high.

"I slept like a log – it was a slightly surreal and weird-feeling. The adrenaline was keeping me awake but I got bit of a delayed 'hangover'."

Even though he admitted that the ride was tough, Chris stressed it was nothing compared to the work the people at Leuchie did each day and was happy that the money he raised would help them continue this.

He said: "I kept thinking that, despite the suffering I was going through for a few hours on the bike, thinking about what people at Leuchie are doing on a daily basis gave me the motivation.

"Seeing all the money coming in – it was a huge motivation."

People can still donate to Chris' fundraiser by visiting www.justgiving.com/fundraising/c-lockett