TWO friends have completed a motorbike ride from John o’ Groats to Lands End, raising thousands for charity in the process.

With more than 100 years of biking experience between them, Geoffrey Pickerill and Pete Stevens’ love of motorbikes brought the Newton Abbot duo together for a ride dubbed ‘Last Long Ride’.

The ride was in aid of Newton Abbot Rotary Club and Newton Abbot Community Shed; Geoffrey a longtime member of the former and Peter a founding member of the latter.

In total, Geoffrey and Pete raised closed to £4,000.

‘We had some absolutely great rides and met some fantastic people along the way’ Pete said.

With Geoff’s connection to the Rotary club, the two bikers stayed at fellow Rotarians’ homes and, where necessary, spent the night at hotels.

‘Our hosts in Glasgow, Ian and Margaret, had this amazing house - they were proper Glaswegian - really lovely.

‘They gave us a wonderful meal when we arrived, and breakfast too.

‘But the highlight was when Geoff and I left and rode down their driveway while Ian was wearing his tam o' shanter playing Scotland the Brave on the bagpipes - it was an absolutely magic moment’ Pete said.

A journey of several days, the trip saw Pete and Geoff navigate both sunshine and heavy rain, which proved to be the foremost challenge the two friends faced.

‘The sun shone both at Land’s End and at John o’ Groats, but on the way down from John o’ Groats back to Inverness it poured with rain and was very windy’ Geoff said.

‘With rain on the outside of the visor, the windshield, and the instruments visibility can be very poor, and a biker is only too well aware of the reduction in adhesion with only two tyres on a very wet road.

‘Fortunately all was well.

‘I suppose I should also admit to various aches and pains from riding in one position for a long way….I celebrated my 76th birthday the day before we reached John O’Groats !’ Geoff added.