84-year-old "Bionic Granny" nearing end of 1000 mile cycle in memory of her children
Mavis Paterson has raised more than £100,000, and counting, for MacMillan Cancer Support
Last updated 29th Jan 2024
Cycling 1000 miles around the Scottish coast sounds like a challenge for most, but 84-year-old Mavis Paterson is proving that age is just a number, doing so whilst raising tens of thousands of pounds for charity.
Granny Mave isn't a stranger to a challenge. She's already cycled across Canada at the young age of 70 and also became the oldest woman to cycle from from Land's End to John O'Groats.
Doing so, she raised £75,000 for MacMillan Cancer Support after losing her mother and sister to the disease.
She set herself the modest target of £35,000 for her cycle around the Scottish coast, something she's already smashed.
DONATE: You can support Mavis on her challenge by donating here
This time she's cycling in memory of her three children, who died four years apart, all in their 40s.
Her son Sandy died in 2012 of a heart attack, her daughter Katie died in 2013 of viral pneumonia and her son Bob died in an accident in 2016.
"For a while, I can forget the pain"
"I can never forget them, but when I'm cycling and on a mission like this then my mind is not full of the children. But when I'm home alone it can be terrible", said Mave.
She spoke to us during a pit-stop in Aberdeen.
"When I get up off my chair to do a challenge that's going to help people I feel different altogether. I can never forget my children, but, for a while, I can forget the pain. The grief never goes away."
"Most people say 'you're mad, you're crazy'. But as long as I'm healthy and my body can work well then I'll carry on. I've always, even as a child, played tennis and hockey at school.
"I was running before I cycled, but then the running caused pain in my knees so I had to stop. But I've now got two new knees and two new hips. They call me the Bionic Granny."
"Wonderful" Scottish hospitality
Whilst the Scottish terrain isn't always the easiest to navigate, Mave says the people have been "amazing".
"Some days are tough, but most of the time I know I'm doing something to raise money to help cancer and people with cancer.
"Thursday was a tough day, big hills. 'Well, this is Aberdeenshire, so there's bound to be hills', as someone said to me.
"The hospitality has been wonderful. People I've never met before have offered meals, overnight stays and things like that. It's just a amazing."
A birthday bike ride
Mave will celebrate her 85th birthday during the challenge, on Wednesday 24th of May.
To celebrate, she'll cycle 31.2 miles from Symington to Moffat.
Mave says she has no plans to put the bike away anytime soon: "It's like a fire in your belly, I can't help it.
"It's burning, I've got to do it.
"And when this is over, if my health is still good, I'll do another, I'll plan something."
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