POLICE officers will turn from the war on drugs to the fight against cancer as they take on the 900-mile slog from John O’Groats to Land’s End in just nine days next month.

The team of five officers, including two from Gwent, will set off on their bikes on May 7, the day of the General Election.

Driven on by the personal experiences of parents and spouses to drive them through, the team have already raised more than £1,000 in aid of Cancer Research and Embrace, which supports child victims of crime.

Collectively known as Bobbies On Bikes, the team includes dog handler PC Steve Duffy, Wiltshire drugs team PCs Nigel Lord and John Cornelius, and Gwent officers Sgt Chris Williams and DC Marc Sturgess.

While the trek has always been on PC Duffy’s bucket list, PC Lord has had to step up from the casual cycle to work to the epic journey through three countries.

“I have always been more of a commute-to-work cyclist than anything more intense, but if you have got to do something for charity it has to be a challenge,” he said.

“Steve is a much better cyclist than I am and he is going to be dragging me along.

“I will be the weakest link, so with that side of things they might have to bring their level down a couple of notches.

“I am sure there will be times when we are all struggling, and there will be peaks and troughs on a daily basis.”

PC Lord is keen to boost funds for his chosen charity, Embrace.

“They are the only charity which deals solely with child victims of crime,” he said.

“They are there to offer support to the victims, from counselling to giving them a little reward for being brave if they have to go through the court process.

“It is a charity that only police officers can go to so they can identify children who really deserve it.

“My wife works in the child protection unit, so she knows the charity very well.

“My father died aged 59 with lung cancer – way before his time. He was a very happy, positive individual who used to run a swimming club and would do a lot for the local community.”

PC Duffy said the journey has been on his agenda for about a year.

“It’s one of those things that has been on the bucket list for a while and I have always fancied doing it,” he said. “Last April I had the idea and started getting serious about it. People were asking if we were going to do it for charity, and at first we hadn’t planned to, but it’s a hell of a thing to try and do so we thought we should.

“We chose Cancer Research because I don’t think there is anyone who is not affected by cancer at some stage in their life.

“My mum died of cancer at 49, my wife lost her dad to cancer and my wifehas been diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma, which isn’t a problem at the moment but it’s something we’re aware of.

“There is no set route so it’s down to us to plan the whole thing out.

“My dad is going to be a support driver so we don’t have to carry our kit and can just keep our mind on the road.”

To donate visit www.justgiving.com/teams/JOGLEMay2015.