A former army sergeant is getting ready to ride 200 miles to raise funds for a charity which supported him after he was wounded in Afghanistan.

Former Light Dragoon Simon Taylor will be tackling The Crossing with friend Cpl Andy Bowen, who still serves with the regiment, which will see them ride from the beach at Whitehaven to the sea at Scarborough.

The pair, who served in Afghanistan together, took up the challenge as a thank you to forces charity The Not Forgotten Association which helped Mr Taylor, 33, 'get his freedom back' after his injury in 2009.

He said: 'The vehicle I was in hit an IED [Improvised Explosive Device].

'I broke everything really, except for my right arm.

'My spine is fused and I lost the lower part of my right leg.

'For an active person like me it was really frustrating not being able to do the things you used to.

'I used to teach adventure training and kayaking and to have that taken away was a huge knock to my morale.

'One of the services charities got me a mountain bike and that got me out and about, before that I was really restricted in where I could go.

'Once a charity has helped you, you want to do something to pay them back.

'The Not Forgotten helps give soldiers that camaraderie that they miss when they leave the forces.'

The event will run over three days from July 10 to 12 and will see riders cover around 110km a day.

To help raise funds for the challenge a family fun day will be held at the Railway Tavern, on Yaxham Road, Dereham, this Sunday.

Mr Taylor now lives with his wife Victoria and children Ben, 12, Leah-Faith, 5, and Indigo, 3, in Greenfields Road, Dereham, having settled in Norfolk after leaving the army.

To donate to the challenge visit https://www.justgiving.com/TheElephantCrossing/

Are you doing something for charity? Write to doug.faulkner@archant.co.uk