A 71 YEAR old survivor of cancer from Cracoe who also has a ‘managed’ heart condition has successfully completed the 174 mile coast to coast Hadrian’s Cycleway.

Robert Milner, who set out on the challenge for raise money for the blood cancer charity, Bloodwise - formally formerly Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research - took three days to complete the solo challenge, from Glannaventa Roman Bath House, Ravenglass in Cumbria, to Arbeia Roman Fort at South Shields in Northumberland, roughly along the line of Hadrians Wall.

“It all went really well. There were some very cold mornings but mostly the conditions were excellent,” he said.

“The scenery along the Cumbrian coast and over the Hadrians Wall section was stunning - even cycling through the centre of Newcastle under its many Tyne bridges was spectacular.”

Robert set off from Ravenglass, Cumbria at 10am on the Friday, and arrived in South Shields, Tyneside at 4pm on the Sunday, spending a total of 20 hours in the saddle, over three days.

“ I had no major issues with either my bike or my health and I enjoyed the whole experience,” he said.

It is not the first time Robert has taken on a challenge for Bloodwise, last year he solo cycled the coast to coast Way of the Roses ride, raising more than £3,000 for the charity.

He took up cycling about four years ago to get himself fit, and also to help with his diagnosis of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia (CLL) .

“Unfortunately for me, my CLL is incurable, but new methods of managing it are being researched and developed all the time, with the help of Bloodwise - so I cycled again to raise money to help them.

“Living in the Yorkshire Dales I have the perfect training ground, which has helped me get fit enough to cycle up to 100 miles a week and ride some of the Tour de France climbs, both in the Alps and Pyrenees. My latest achievement being to cycle up Col du Tourmalet - to over 7000 feet - although not quite as quick as the Tour de France.”

So far, Robert has seen donations to his charity fundraising page reach almost £900. People can still donate online at: justgiving.com/RobertMilner19