A Bury amateur endurance athlete who’d "never ran once" before she was 40 years old, has completed a bike ride that saw her travel across the North.

Lisa Carter’s journey began in Sheffield and saw her cover 1,080km with 14,000 metres of ascent across five and a half days.

The 53-year-old kick-started her sporting spree when a colleague asked her if she wanted to run the Edinburgh marathon – since then she’s competed in the Iron Man World Championships in Hawaii.

Her latest challenge was part of an event called All Points North, where riders are tasked with finding their own route across 10 checkpoints – ranging from Union Chain Bridge, near the Scottish border, to Buttermere in the Lake District.

Ms Carter said: “I found out about the challenge, when my friend saw it and said, ‘I think you might be quite good at this’, so I entered it not knowing what I was letting myself in for.

Bury Times: The race took her across 10 checkpoints in the NorthThe race took her across 10 checkpoints in the North (Image: Lisa Carter)

“I was used to endurance sport, but not so much cycling, so it was a huge learning experience from when I paid my money and pressed enter.”

Ms Carter had to carry a tracker with her throughout the cycle, as well as taking timestamped photos and answering a quiz question on a card at each checkpoint to prove she’d visited each one.

The Bury Clarion Cycling Club and Holcombe Harriers running club member believes it’s possible for people to begin endurance activities at any age.

Ms Carter said: “You’re sporting days could just be starting, just start moving.

“Walking, couch to 5k, a bit of cycling, just has to be short and then you’ll want to build it up.

“Join a club, there are so many good clubs in the Bury area, there are plenty of people out there who’ll join you and they aren’t always amazing, top-end runners, they’re just having a go.

“Actually, we’re all just having a go!”