Ian and Daniel Ramsbottom, from Betws Ifan in Ceredigion, are cycling from London to Paris to raise money for the Royal British Legion.

The father and son duo are among 150 Armed Forces veterans, serving personnel and volunteers cycling 285 miles to the French capital in aid of the UK’s largest Armed Forces charity.

Backed by RBL staff and supporters, they departed on Thursday morning from London’s Biggin Hill and will travel through the Kent countryside before arriving in Dover bound for Calais.

Once in France, the riders pass through the French towns of Abbeville and Beauvais in the Somme, arriving in Paris on 7 September to ride down the famous Champs-Élysées to the finishing line at the Arc de Triomphe.

Ian and Daniel both have direct connections to the Armed Forces community, with Ian working for defence company QinetiQ in Aberporth, and Daniel as an Acting Squadron Leader in the RAF.

Both took part in Pedal to Paris last year, but with Daniel being deployed next year, they wanted to create more father-son memories together and raise money to help their community.

Ian said: “The RBL as a charity has always been prominent to me. When we’ve done rides in the area or when we’ve taken part in local carnivals, we always saw the RBL there, taking part in processions or having a stand that people could go up to. Myself and Daniel were talking the other day about why we started this, and the answer was we always saw a presence from the RBL.

“And with both of us working in the defence industry for so long, the RBL is the natural choice charity for us to support.”

Daniel is one of the 21 volunteer riders helping to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all participants.

Teresa Greener, spokesperson for the Royal British Legion, said: “We’re delighted to be welcoming nearly 130 participants to our 29th annual Royal British Legion Pedal to Paris ride.

“It’s so inspiring to see riders from across the country come together to show their support for the Armed Forces community.

“In the last year we’ve been able to provide support to over 22,000 service personnel and their families, and we’re only able to continue doing that with the help of the money raised by people taking part in events like this.

“A huge thank you to everyone generous enough to give their time, and we’d encourage anyone interested in joining us for our 30th year of Pedal to Paris next year to visit our website.”

If you’d like to sponsor Ian, please visit: Ian Ramsbottom Pedal to Paris Fundraising