A Portarlington man has begun an incredible 4,500km cycle through the Rocky Mountains in a bid to raise funds for Laois Hospice.
John Bolton, who captained the Laois U-21 team to a Leinster title in 1987, is currently on day 6 of the 35 day of the epic trek.
The 49-year-old, who is a fitness trainer, began the cycle in Calgary, Canada on Saturday and will go all the way to the Mexican border.
John launched his training and fundraising last January and aimed to raise €10,000 for Laois Hospice but had managed to exceed that before he even left – with the fund standing at €12,000 before John had even got on the plane.
True Fitness are providing daily updates on their Facebook page and they report that John reached the US border into Montana and passed through US Custom and Border Protection with no problems.
He spent Monday in a little town called Eureka where he stocked up now with some good food and refreshments for the 2nd leg of that day’s cycle.
Although he will be crossing over the Rockies in Montana from time to time the terrain seems to be a bit more forgiving than in the Canadian Rockies.
In total John has covered 440km in Canada and 158km in Montana with approximately 645km left in Montana before he reaches the border of Idaho.
Online donations can be made via a PayPal link on www.laoishospice.ie, just name check Rocky Mountain Cycle when making payment.
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