THE president of the British Veterinary Cattle Association, Andrew Cobner, who practised for 30 years at Holsworthy, is currently on a cycling challenge from Lands End to John O’Groats in support of charity, Send a Cow.

Andrew, celebrating his 60th birthday this year, from Mawnan Smith near Falmouth, is leading a team of vets, farmers and friends across the entire length of England and Scotland, cycling over 950 miles. He started on May 7 and is set to arrive in John O’Groats on May 21.

Along the way, he’ll be joined by a number of different vets and fellow BCVA members who have signed up to take part on various legs of the journey.

On Monday, May 8, he passed through Holsworthy, calling at the Golf Club in the afternoon on the Lanivet to Zeal Monachorum leg of the charity ride.

The British Cattle Veterinary Association (BCVA) is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The organisation has pledged to fundraise £50,000 for international development charity, Send a Cow, by taking part in a series of challenge events, including the Lands End to John O’Groats cycle, a cycle relay across England and a walk across Wales led by chief veterinary officer for Wales, Christianne Glossop. All five chief veterinary officers will also be walking up Slieve Donard — the highest peak in Norther Ireland.

The money raised will support Send a Cow’s work with smallholder farmers in some of the poorest parts of Africa. Founded by West Country dairy farmers in the late 1980s, the charity provides training, tools, seeds and livestock so that families can grow their own food and lift themselves out of poverty for good.

Andrew said: ‘‘Before agreeing to do this I hadn’t cycled for about 40 years and that was four miles at most, so this has been a bit of a learning curve and a bit of a shock for an aging body. The first few weeks were a real struggle but once I had a few miles under my belt I joined a local cycle group — the Falmouth Wheelers — who have been a fantastic help, and from that point on it started to become enjoyable. The big question however still remains — although I’ve now cycled 70 miles in a day, can I repeat this daily for 14 days?

“One of the best things for me about this is that it is all about collective effort. Although we can achieve many things on our own when we work together we can achieve so much more.

‘‘Send A Cow is a fantastic charity helping families out of poverty and giving them a sustainable means of food production. It helps them to become more resilient in the face of the inevitable challenges that they face.’’

Alternatively you can text ‘BCVA50 £xxx to 70070