South Shields cyclist completes 260-mile coast to coast and back in just two days - all thanks to his favourite Custard Creams

Ronnie Peet, 44, of Banbury Terrace, South Shields, replenished some of the 15,000 calories he burned off during the double-leg coast-to-coast ride by munching on custard creams.

It helped the sweet-toothed dad-of-two to stay focussed while on the road and in his bid to bring crucial cash support to mental health charity Mind.

Married Ronnie, who works for international accountancy firm Sage, turned to the charity for vital backing when he suffered a breakdown last September.

Its experts gave him an essential early boost in his fight against anxiety and depression – and he then recovered with the help of doctors and the love of family and friends.

Ronnie, a match commentator and podcast presenter at South Shields Football Club, rode from home to Whitehaven, in Cumbria, and back, spending 23 hours in the saddle.

He said: “I was in training for last year’s Great North Run and was out running when I just froze on the path, I couldn’t move, I was having a massive panic attack.

“I realise now that it had been building for years, but that I hadn’t noticed – it was just building up and building up.

“I was getting up in the mornings with a sense of fear and I didn’t know why. I suffered from high anxiety and panic attacks that led me to clinical depression.

“It took a massive breakdown for me to ask for help. My brain couldn’t cope with thoughts that were going around and around.”

Ronnie contacted Mind, which gave him short bridging support, but it was those closest to him who set him fully on the road to recovery.

He added: “I had been planning a cycle trip to the Champagne region of France this year with friends and was going to try to raise money from that.

“It was cancelled due to coronavirus, but I still wanted to give something back and this coast-to-coast was the answer.

“Interestingly, my fuel was mostly from packets of custard creams, I love them and they give quite a bit of energy.”

Ronnie set off from South Shields seafront at 6.45am on Wednesday, September 16, climbing 9,000ft as he travelled over the north Pennines and into the Lake District.

He stayed overnight in Whitehaven, but was back on the road at 9am the next day, taking a different route home, via Carlisle.

At around the 40-mile stage, at Haltwhistle, Northumberland, fatigue set in and he struggled over the next 30 miles.

His friend and work colleague Tim Hines journeyed to meet him for safety as he approached the home straight in darkness.

Ronnie was then cheered at home by civil servant wife Louise and children Adam, 16, and Isla, 12.

Over £4,000 has already been pledged but he expects the final total to hit £9,000 from other donations and the doubling of funds by Sage.

Donations can be made at https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/Team/c2c250challenge

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