Gordon falls at the last fence but gets back in the saddle

Gordon Whittaker ended up in hospital after a fall from his bike only two days from the finishing line on the Perth to Sydney route.

He said: "I was so desperate to finish the trip and the end was in sight but there was a bump in the road hidden by the shade of a tree.

"I hurt my head and shoulder and had head X-rays at a hospital. It shook me up but I badly wanted to finish, so after two days recovering, I got back on my bike."

The mission for the superfit

37-year-old, who has cycled across Europe and America, was his most dangerous to date as he rode across miles of isolated, barren Australian terrain with no back-up during a gruelling seven-and-a-half week stint.

He carried his food, tent and equipment on his bike but still managed to appreciate the awesome landscape while enduring scorching heat, poisonous snakes and spiders.

Gordon, who gave up his job as a welfare and truancy officer for Blackburn's Education Department to carry out his cycling expeditions, said: "It was so very satisfying that I achieved it on my own. I saw all sorts of wildlife such as kangaroos, wombats, koala bears and beautiful birds."

He added: "The people were really wonderful to me. I was given two invitations to stay at people's homes. I also stopped in roadhouses. "I didn't enjoy sleeping in the bush, though. It was very remote. It went dark at 6pm and from my tent I could hear wild dogs moving around."

Gordon met a family friend, Colin Friendship, at the finishing line.

Gordon said: "He said I had been sitting down for weeks and needed some exercise. He took me for a walk in a forest. I was just ready to die!"

Gordon's cycle ride will raise funds for Slaidburn Youth Hostel, which relies on voluntary help and desperately needs to replace bunk beds.

Anyone wanting to make a donation can contact Gordon on 01254 812554.

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