A FORMER superbike rider will be relying on his inner engine this summer to raise money for a cancer charity.

Jack Groves, 25, from Highworth, will take part in the 70.3-mile half Iron Man triathlon as he aims to raise £1,000 for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research, which funds investigations into treating blood cancer.

He said: “I’ve always enjoyed a challenge and this is the biggest challenge I can think of.

“It’s a great charity to raise money for. Everyone knows someone affected by cancer and, who knows in the future I might need the support of a charity like this one.

“I just believe in it a massive amount. The more we can help out the better.”

The challenge will begin with a 1.2-mile swim, followed by a 56-mile bike ride, before finishing with a 13.1-mile run.

In order to successfully complete the triathlon, Jack will have to do it all within 17 hours.

Iron Man begins on June 14 in Staffordshire and is ranked among the most difficult physical endurance tests.

Jack, who works as a gym instructor at the Marriott, spent six years competing in superbike championships before a lack of funding forced him to leave the racetrack behind.

He has since been racking up seven hours of training weekly since he began in November. He plans to increase this to 15 in the coming weeks.

Jack keeps calm in the run-up to the triathlon by never thinking of it as a 70-mile challenge.

“I’ll focus on the individual parts of the race, rather than the 70 miles as a whole, which would make me feel very nervous,” he said.

He has also drastically overhauled his lifestyle to keep up with the gruelling demands of the race.

“It’s all about eating clean, preparing your food in advance and resisting treats – although I do still love a chai latte from Starbucks,” he said.

Jack wants to rally support from the public and will add every generous donor’s name to his racing shirt.

He will be supported by girlfriend Kathryn, stepdad Ryan, mum Claire, sister Victoria and nine-year-old brother Ethan on the day.

To donate visit www.Justgiving.com/JGStaff or to sponsor Jack’s T-shirt visit Jackmgroves@googlemail.com