'Blind Dave' crosses finish line on Colditz to West Bromwich bike challenge

A blind man who has been cycling for charity from Colditz Castle in Germany to West Bromwich has completed his 800 miles (1,287km) trip.

Dave Heeley, known as Blind Dave, arrived at the Hawthorns stadium on Sunday, completing the challenge in seven days.

Mr Heeley, 64, used a tandem bicycle and rode alongside six others.

The cyclist said the journey had been an "incredible, unbelievable adventure".

"These guys who have been with me, are just something special," Mr Heeley added.

Two of Mr Heeley's daughters, Georgie and Dannie, were with him in the support crew and Georgie said her father was "really cool".

The trip has been raising money for the charity arm of West Bromwich Albion and the team had raised nearly £30,000 by Sunday.

Mr Heeley has already run through the Sahara Desert and braved the shark-infested waters surrounding Alcatraz.

The "Escape from Colditz" challenge, which had been postponed twice due to the coronavirus pandemic, came about when a friend of Mr Heeley's mentioned he had visited the castle.

Mr Heeley said the team had hoped to complete the challenge in 2020, the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Colditz Castle.

"2020 would have been brilliant because all of us were a lot fitter, as the pandemic took a lot of training out of us because we weren't allowed to," he said.

The journey took the group from Germany through the Netherlands to the Hook of Holland, over the North Sea to Harwich in Essex, to Meriden, Warwickshire, and finally to West Bromwich.

An emotional Mr Heeley said he would be sitting down with a "couple of pints to go through the laughs, the thrills, the spills, the pain and the pleasure".

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