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“Being a huge Tolkien Fan I’ve always wanted to go on an adventure so just like the hobbit I was there and back again”
Freddie's brave battle with the disease has seen him endure surgery, 80 hours of chemotherapy.
Even if Freddie makes it to full remission, as we all hope, there is still almost a 50% chance of the cancer returning. If this happens, Freddie's chance of survival dramatically drops to less than 10%.
Additional treatment in the US will provide a vaccination that reduces the risk of a relapse dramatically.
Ben, born in Worcester but grow up in Yorkshire, surrounded by incredible biking roads now lives in Scotland where he’s planning to stay.
“As a Registered Nurse I use my time on my bike as a perfect escape from the day to day. My Dad has always had a bike and I blame him for my obsession. When I was 14 he bought 650cc Suzuki bandit, I loved riding pillion with him and I think that’s where the bug really set in. Between going to Uni, getting married and having kids I never found the time or finances to sit my test.
“But when I turned 30 I asked my family and friends to not buy me any presents but to help chip into my license fund instead. I got my full license in April 2018. I got off my lexmoto 125cc and missed a few steps jumping onto a 2018 Harley Davidson Streetglide Special 1745cc.
“I’m a member of HOG and ride with the Dunedin Chapter but started riding with an awesome group of folks in the Fair City Harley Riders in Perth affectionately known as the FuCHRS who I still ride with now.”
What was it about his story that inspired you to get on your bike to raise the funds?
“When I was growing up in Yorkshire I used to knock about with Freddies dad Phil, as we were both members of Young Farmers. I was on holiday when I saw his son needed help so got to thinking what I could do to help raise some of the funds he needed. I realised then I wasn’t fit enough to run a marathon nor was a sporty enough to ride a bicycle for any distance. However I there was one challenge that I knew I had the capacity for. The Iron Hog was something which I knew was going to be not only a physical but mental challenge and this adventure began to come to life.”
Ben planned to complete the Iron Hog Challenge riding just over 1500 miles and stopping at as many Harley Davidson dealerships as he could within 48hrs. The Rules state he would have to start and finish the ride at the same dealership and visit Edinburgh, Plymouth, Cardiff and Maidenhead to achieve the Iron Hog Challenge. Ben pushed it even further by trying to reach many more than just the mandatory 4 dealerships, in the end he travelled to 16 dealerships throughout his tour of the UK with his allotted timeframe. Ben covered all the costs involved in the trip himself with all donations going direct to helping Freddie receive the treatment.