Man rides moped from Lands End to John O'Groats to raise money for Scarborough RNLI

With his 60th birthday approaching in November, Col Stead, wanted to do something memorable.

He decided to celebrate the milestone by driving from Lands End to John O'Groats on a 10-year-old 49cc moped which has a top speed on 30mph.

The journey, in June, took Col four and a half days to complete and covered 941 miles, using smaller roads as vehicles with engines smaller than 50cc aren’t allowed on motorways.

Col and his wife Karen bought a couple of spare wheels, hired a van and transported the four-stroke Piaggio Zip to Lands End.

As Col slowly made his way north, Karen preceded him in the support van and waited at that night’s stopping place.

At journey’s end, the moped went back in the van for the long drive home to Pickering.

The challenge went without at hitch: Col didn't suffer any punctures, breakdowns or mishaps, no doubt helped by his knowledge of the roads due to being a long-distance lorry driver.

Col’s employer, GE Smith of Malton, sponsored the fuel.

“I wanted to do something memorable, with my 60th coming up”, said Col, who squeezed in a bit of tourism en route.

Through a Justgiving page and a collection tin, Col raised £591.25 for Scarborough RNLI, which he and Karen presented to lifeboat personnel this weekend.

Another £100 was donated to Redcar RNLI by a friend.

Col is planning another collection for the RNLI at his birthday party.