Cycling nurses raise more than £75,000 for charity

Two nurses have raised £75,500 for charity after completing a gruelling 4,000-mile cycle ride across the US.

Endoscopy nurse Andy Dennis and his girlfriend Tracey Hill, who is a nurse in York Hospital’s dermatology department, cycled across 13 states, from San Francisco to New York. 

The 71-day cycle challenge formed part of Mr Dennis’s ongoing project to raise £100,000 for international medical aid charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), of which he has raised £67,960. Ms Hill aims to raise £10,000 for the charity – her current total is £7,540.

Satisfying trip

‘It was the biggest single event in our non-working lives,’ said Mr Dennis. ‘The feeling of satisfaction is immense. We achieved our goal of cycling 4,000 miles across deserts, mountain ranges and vast, open, shelter-less expanses.’

Mr Dennis, who works at Harrogate District Hospital, has worked with MSF on four missions. This included spending a month in Sierra Leone at the height of the Ebola outbreak in 2014.

‘I have looked into the eyes of some of the most desperate people you could imagine and, through MSF, I have been able to offer them some hope.’

Epic adventure

The cycle ride proved a challenging experience. ‘We found ourselves on a multi-lane motorway and it was too late to get off,’ said Mr Dennis.

‘We had to ride about five miles with waves of speeding vehicles descending on us every few minutes. A genuine white-knuckle ride!’

The pair have already been looking at future challenges, including a bike ride from the Arctic Circle to the Mediterranean. 

Further information

• Andy Dennis for MSF
• The Cycling Nurse blog