Dan and Christa Harrison, from Newark, are taking on two gruelling challenges this year to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Society.

A couple are planning to get in the saddle and pound the pavements for charity this year.

Dan and Christa Harrison, owners of Falcon Motors in Newark, are taking on gruelling challenges this year to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Society, a cause close to both their hearts as they have both lost grandfathers to the disease.

In August, Christa will be running the Newark Half-marathon and a month later Dan will cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats, covering 980 miles in just nine days.

Dan only started cycling a year ago, and he has been trying to train as much as possible in preparation.

He said: “I have been trying to get out on my bike most weekends to train and will try to train in the Peak District because there’s not that many hills around here ­— that will be a real challenge.”

The toughest stage of the challenge will be stage seven, from Houptoun Estate to Strathdown in Scotland, which will see Dan climbing to heights of over 2,000ft.

Meanwhile, Christa has been busy training for the Newark Half-marathon.

She said: “I applied for the London Marathon but didn’t get a place, so I wanted to find another way to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Society with him, and it’s a little challenge for me too.”

Christa admitted that finding the time to train was tricky as the couple have three children ­— Sam, 12, nine-year-old Joseph and Grace, four ­— but said that she does enjoy it as a way of finding time for herself

She said: “The training is going ok so far. I am aiming to finish in under 2½ hours and so far I have run 10km in an hour, which is about half of that so I’m on track at the moment.”

The couple are hoping to raise £2,200 for Alzheimer’s Society. To make a donation, visit their online fundraising page at https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/dan christaharrison