Northampton cyclist will pedal for 12-hours-a-day in his garage in tribute to 'tough' NHS hours

A Northampton graphic designer will spend the next three days cycling in his garage for 12 hours at a time for charity.

Kris Hawkins is set to pedal for hundreds of miles at his home in St Crispins starting tomorrow (April 22) in three sets of 12-hour shifts - the same hours as any NHS healthcare key worker.

The 34-year-old will clock up 36 hours of pedal power on this Turbo Trainer in a bid to raise at least £2,000 for the Northamptonshire Health Charitable Fund.Kris said: "I'm a keen cyclist but I've never done anything like this before.

"I've got a lot of time at home at the moment and I just wanted to do something so say thank you to the NHS and to key workers."

Kris decided on cycling in 12-hour shifts starting at 7.45am each day so it would line up with the hours worked by NHS staff.

Now, Kris has set up a JustGiving page with a target of £2,000, and is already over £1,000 towards his goal.He said: "I've got a friend, Natalie, who works in the maternity ward at NGH and I know how tough those hours can be.

"Last year I cycled with some colleagues from Northampton to Exeter, and that was five or six hours in the saddle each day. I've never done anything like this.

"I'll have my laptop to keep in touch with people on Zoom and Skype. Other than that my wife will be there to keep me company and I'll just have to get through some series on Netflix to keep my mind off it.

Kris modelled the challenge after a similar marathon effort by Tour-de-France champion Geraint Thomas, who last week raised over £360,000 by cycling 1,200km in his garage.