Perthshire Navy vet in 200-mile cycling adventure
The battlefield bike ride takes a route through key World War II battlefield sites across Europe over four days.
A Perthshire Royal Navy veteran who almost died nine years ago is leading a team taking part in the Help for Heroes Big Battlefield Bike Ride (BBBR), which this year is part of commemorations for the 80th anniversary of VE Day.
Stephen Pickering, from Blairgowrie, suffered an arrhythmia in 2016 during a meeting in Boston, USA, and colleagues had to perform CPR for five and a half minutes until the emergency team arrived, before taking him to a specialist cardiac hospital.
The 60-year-old, who now has a pacemaker and an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), has been using cycling as part of a regime to take better care of himself and signed up to do his first bike ride for the charity four years ago.
The BBBR takes in a 200-mile route through key World War II battlefield sites across Europe over four days.
He is now a member of The Badgers - a team of six people from all over the country, committed to supporting other veterans.
Stephen said: 'We all met when we took part in the BBBR in 2022 and our friendship has grown since then.
'We've all been really moved by the stories of veterans who take part in the ride, who experience physical and mental health challenges.
'When you're riding side by side with someone, it can be easier to open up and tell someone how you're feeling.
'It's motivated us all to want to keep coming back, and the ride is so much more than a fundraising activity.'
He served in the Navy for 14 years from 1981 and was involved in conflicts in the Falklands and the First Gulf War.
He added: 'There's a historian on the trip, who tells us about the different events that took place during the Second World War at locations along the way, which is really thought provoking. This year's ride also commemorates the 80th Anniversary of VE Day, so it will be particularly poignant.
'It is so important that we remember the sacrifices that so many people made for our freedom, so that we can try and avoid making the same mistakes again.'
This year's BBBR starts in London on June 17.
Since its inception in 2007, it has been a key event for Help for Heroes and last year it raised £344,416.
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