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Guinness World Record title for charity cycling challenge

In June 2023, Scott Mitchell, 46, from Kendal set off on an eight-day ‘Cycle the Nation’ challenge to go through every county in England. While he didn’t quite make it to all 48, Scott did visit 43 counties and, almost a year after completing the challenge, it was confirmed that he holds the Guinness World Record title for the most UK counties visited by bicycle in one week. Scott takes inspiration from his son, Alex, who lives with Becker muscular dystrophy, and his Cycle the Nation charity challenge raised £7,276.

I took on this challenge for my son, Alex. He’s now 23 and has lived with Becker muscular dystrophy since he was 14. I hope that my fundraising will help Muscular Dystrophy UK to fund more research into the condition and that one day there will be a cure.

Very few people understand the condition

More than anything, I need the world to see what I’m doing, why I’m doing it, and to spread the word. For Alex, the basics are hard: getting out of bed, getting from room to room; but it affects him mentally as well as physically. The progression of his condition is becoming increasingly obvious and impacts every aspect of his life, which is heartbreaking to watch as a parent.

Lots of people haven’t even heard of muscular dystrophy and very few understand the severity of the condition. So, as well as raising money for Muscular Dystrophy UK to help fund support and research, I hope that by doing challenges like this and sharing updates online, I can increase awareness as well.

This is just the start!

I’ve been fundraising for the charity since Alex was diagnosed nine years ago, taking part in everything from the London Marathon to a Quadrathlon, as well as various cycling challenges. For this one, I started in Cornwall and ended in Newcastle and cycled around 1,100 miles in total.

It was amazing news to finally hear from Guinness World Records and be given the record title for the most UK counties visited by bicycle in one week, but this is just the start! I’m already thinking about my next charity challenge for 2025 which will encompass some of this world record but go further. I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone for their support to date – ultimately this is about fundraising for Muscular Dystrophy UK, to help find a cure for muscle wasting conditions like the one my son has.

You can follow Scott’s cycling adventures on his ‘Cycle the Nation’ YouTube channel here.  

If you’ve been inspired by Scott’s story and would like to fundraise or take on a challenge, find out more here.

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