A MATFIELD father and son raised more than £3,000 for charity after cycling 440kms from London to Paris.

Richard Barsley, of Coppers Lane, and his son Charles, 25, took part in the four-day cycle ride which began on September 4.

The 52-year-old said: "It was very hard work, cycling 70 to 75 miles a day for four days. I'd done a lot of training but nothing quite like that.

"Nothing can describe the thrill and emotion of cycling through Paris with a rolling roadblock and everyone waving and cheering. The moment we glimpsed the Arc de Triomphe we took off at a sprint towards it.

"It was so amazing to cycle to Paris. We learnt so much of what we were capable of and hope to continue and improve our cycling into the future. Thank you for everyone who sponsored us and thought of us in the rain.

"My legs seemed OK but there was a certain amount of saddle soreness at the end."

Mr Barsley, who owns Barsleys on Commercial Road, explained he had only really taken up cycling recently.

He said: "It was about August last year when I started cycling to work.

"Now I'm looking to find out when the next one is."

Mr Barsley added: "It was fantastic. Who wants to join me next year?"