A soldier is cycling from London to Belgium to raise cash for injured colleagues and bereaved families within his regiment.
Kieran Dunk, raised and schooled in Wendover, has been a member of the Grenadier Guards for 10 years.
On September 24 he will leave Horseguards Parade for a three-day event involving 300 cyclists.
Serving soldiers, injured servicemen and bereaved family members will make up the cycling team undertaking the 300km journey.
The sponsorship money raised will go to the Colonel’s Fund, set up by the regiment in 2007. Sgt Dunk, 27, said: “Our regiment has always been about helping our members.
“We support soldiers who have been injured through things including amputation, eyesight, brain injuries, post traumatic stress, and the families who have been bereaved.
“A good friend of mine lost both his legs on our second tour of Afghanistan and his home needed to be altered for wheelchair access. The fund can help with things like that.”
Sgt Dunk, who was brought up in Lionel Avenue, never wanted to do anything other than join the army.
He said: “I liked the active nature of it.” He has done tours of Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan as well as serving in the Falkland Islands and Kenya.
He admits the operational element of his work can be frightening but says his job is to motivate his men.
“I didn’t think so much about the danger when I was younger,” he said.
“But since I married my wife Sarah three years ago I have started to think about it more. When you are out there you don’t dwell on it, the training kicks in, but you do think about it later when you get back home.”
In addition to being a serving soldier there is a ceremonial aspect to Sgt Dunk’s job. His regiment is one of the oldest in the army and, dressed in bearskin and scarlet tunic, takes part in Trooping the Colour and guarding the royal palaces. He sees the Queen regularly when on duty at Windsor Castle and she greets him.
The sponsored ride is Sgt Dunk’s first venture into cycling and he is doing a fair bit of training.
{http://www.justgiving.com/grenadierguardssupportcompany|If you would like to sponsor him go to the JustGiving website|link to justgiving}
Please state you are from Bucks and are sponsoring Sgt Dunk.