THREE months ago, Clare Arron watched her cousin cycle over the Forth Bridge on his charity ride from Land’s End to John O’Groats.
Now, in less than a fortnight, she will be following in his tyre marks as she gets ready to tackle the near-900-mile trek.
The 63-year-old, who is a support worker with local charity ELCAP, will set off for her solo ride on September 2.
All going well, she hopes to reach the finish line within three weeks, raising money for The Brain Tumour Charity along the way.
She said: “I just felt really emotional watching my cousin do that.
“They raised a lot of money for charity and I thought sometimes, when something really difficult happens and you feel you cannot do anything, there is still something you can do.”
Clare, who lives in Dunbar, will set off on her journey on September 2 and hopes to be back home within three weeks.
She will travel south by train and hopes to get the first miles under her belt on the same day.
From there, she is aiming to cycle about 50 miles each day as she makes her way north.
She said: “I have ridden a bike all my life and I do ride it to work but that literally takes me 10 minutes from my house.
“At school, at university, at work, whatever, I ride a bike but I have never done any sort of endurance, definitely not in that category.
“I have got a rusty seven-gear bike with a basket on the front, but I have bought a new bike and all the stuff I need: a helmet, cycling shorts and all the things I did not have.
“People thought I was not leaving enough time to train for it, but there is no time limit.
“The only pressure is the pressure you put on yourself.”
Support has come from family, friends and colleagues, with Colin Cairns Ford, of Belhaven Bikes, singled out for special thanks.
Before setting off, Clare has already raised more than £3,500 for the charity, which is dedicated to funding research, raising awareness of brain tumours, reducing diagnosis times, and providing support and information for people with brain tumours, their families and friends.
Donations are continuing to come in at justgiving.com/page/clare-arron-cycle
She said: “I have a very emotional reason for it.
“I have asked, obviously, friends and family, and wider than that.
“I have just been a bit blown away by people’s donations that very quickly came in.
“I am hugely appreciative.
“No donation is too small and that is the truth of it.
“The more people that put a few pounds in means people can raise quite a lot of money for a charity that is very necessary.”
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