A GROUP of young farmers from Worcestershire are swapping their tractors for bikes to cycle 267 miles across the channel to France.

Phil Maiden, aged 33, from Elmley Lovett, near Droitwich, whose dad suffered a stroke in 2013, is taking on the Arch to Arc challenge along with Chris Acock, aged 22 and Tom Worthington, aged 28, both of Kempsey.

Joining them on the challenge in aid of the Stroke Association are Matt Cobain, aged 27, of Bishampton, near Pershore, Michael Jordan, aged 26, of Inkberrow, near Alcester and Will Parry, aged 24, and Chris Perkins, aged 28, from elsewhere in the county.

The team will set off from The London Arch in Croome Court near Pershore on Monday, March 30 and cycle an average of 66 miles a day to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris four days later.

Mr Maiden said the support offered by the Stroke Association had been invaluable when his dad fell ill and wanted to give something back.

“Stroke can have a huge impact on someone’s life and can be completely devastating,” he said.

“I’m so thankful to my pals for coming together to support such a fantastic cause and I hope that we can do our bit to help conquer this awful condition.”

Regional fundraiser from the Stroke Association in the West Midlands Claire Benfield said there are about 152,000 strokes a year in the UK – about one every three and a half minutes.

“We’re a charity that relies on people like Phil and his team to raise funds so we can be there for families affected by stroke,” she said.

“We wish the team all the luck in their training and we’ll be cheering the team on as they leave for their journey.”

To sponsor the team visit www.justgiving.com/archtoarc2015 or follow their progress via twitter on @Arch2Arc2015.