A Pembroke man has recently raised a further £4,600 for Prostate Cancer UK by taking on another charity cycle run.

Back in June, Darren Pennington took part in the ‘Football to Amsterdam’ bike ride, organised by Prostate Cancer UK, and with two consecutive ride routes, starting from The Lee Valley Velopark at London’s Olympic Park and Bramall Lane, home of Sheffield United FC, participants were asked to ride on behalf of the clubs that they support.

“With me being the only Swansea City rider in 2018, I was christened ‘the only Jack in the village’ by other team riders; and in 2019 I was part of team ‘Mispace’ which had three other Welsh riders in it; however, his year, I was part of team ‘Mongrel’ which was made up of other strays that registered for the ride!” explained Darren.

Having previously completed the London route in 2018 and 2019 (interrupted by the pandemic), Darren decided to take on the Yorkshire route, to complete his ‘hat-trick’ of rides.

“Day one started from Sheffield, riding 80 miles to Hull KR’s Craven Park ground,” he continued.

“An overnight ferry took us to Rotterdam as the start for day 2, riding 65 miles to the Johann Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam, an iconic backdrop for a finish line!

“I was fortunate enough to be presented with an orange jersey by the organisers - a Dutch- themed tip of the hat to the tour de France’s yellow jersey - for the figure raised for the event and having completed both routes and my hat- trick.

“Not many of these get awarded, so I feel very privileged.”

Darren managed to raise over £4,600 for this event, with a total of £10,860 over the three he has undertaken.

“I received a lot of sponsorship from a number of individuals and organisations to achieve this, most notably the members of Pembroke Power Sports and Social Club.

“A special mention needs to go to Mrs. Frankie Small at the club, who sadly lost her husband Bud to the disease. Her motivation has been the driving force behind much of the Club’s fundraising.

“Prostate Cancer kills more men in the UK than any other form of cancer, one every 45 minutes- every half of a football match.

“In the UK, 1 in 8 men in the UK will get prostate cancer in their lifetime. If you’re over 50 you can demand a free PSA test, so go and get yourself tested,” added Darren, who is pictured with Frankie right.

Darren
(Pic supplied)