Couple cycling to favourite holiday bar in Turkey for charity

Ian Watson and Carol Robb are destined for Dalyan, with their sights set on celebrating their mammoth ride with a drink at the Sofra pub.

Their Sunderland 2 Sofra feat is in aid of Macmillan, with the couple blogging their progress as they follow the Euro Velo routes.

Ian, 53, and Carol, 56, run CycleWorld in High Street East, and are now in Germany after leaving their Whitburn home, catching the ferry to Amsterdam from North Shields and then through the Netherlands.

Their rough plan for their route will take them around the Alps, passing through Switzerland and Italy as they head for Greece and then on to Turkey.

Sunderland and Dalyan are roughly 2,500 miles apart, although the couple are not sure how many miles exactly they will cover, depending on their route. They estimate they will ride up to 100 miles a day, with some sections covered using public transport.

Their finishing point is just a short distance away from their holiday home.

Ian said: “There’s not huge deadline, but we’re trying to do it within a month.

“We’ve both cycled for years.

“We’re doing it for Macmillan because we feel it’s the best cause and it helps a lot of people.

“The money which goes into research just goes to make the drug companies money, where Macmillan helps people through their cancer.”

The couple, who are staying with locals along the way through Airbnb, are using Giant Toughroad bikes with panniers on the back and a handlebar bag.

All their kit, clothes and essentials to last around four weeks have been squeezed into the bags, with no support vehicle to back them up on the ride, which started at the end of last month.

They are recording their experiences through https://sunderland2sofra.wordpress.com/ as well as https://www.facebook.com/sunderland2sofra/.

Donations can be made via https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Ian-Watson24.