Three Bristol men have set off on a 1,000-mile bike ride from Montpelier in Bristol to Montpellier in the South of France.

They left yesterday from Picton Street, and their route takes them to Poole in Dorset, where they will catch a ferry to Cherbourg.

From there they will go to La Rochelle and Toulouse before reaching Montpellier on the southern coast of France.

They have all taken five weeks off work to complete the trip, and are each raising money for a charity close to their hearts.

Luke Betts, 31, a support worker from Sea Mills, has raised about £2,000 for the Motor Neurone Association.

His older brother, Joe, 42, was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease seven years ago, and before that was a keen cyclist.

He said: "We are going to be camping each night, so we have to carry everything on the back of our bikes. That means we can't take very much at all – a few pairs of clean underpants and that's about it!

"I am really looking forward to it, it means a lot to me to be able to raise money for this charity."

Joining Luke will be 28-year-old Stuart Sidebotham and 29-year-old Mo Almaghrabi, both from Easton.

Stuart, a mental health worker, is raising money for Cancer Research.

He said: "A few of my close friends in the last 18 months have been told they have terminal cancer, so it seemed right to raise money for this charity.

"I have been training as much as I can and I've managed to lose about two and a half stone in the process."

Mo, who works in sales, is raising money for Medical Aid for Palestine and the national Palestinian Solidarity Campaign.

He said: "My father was born in Jerusalem, and I am Palestinian. I went to Palestine last year to see family and I couldn't believe what I saw. I really wanted to help.

"I can't wait for the trip – I have done lots of travelling in my time and you always meet people on crazy cycling missions – now I am going to be one of them."

To follow the team's progress and donate to their supported causes, you can find a page on Facebook by searching for "charity cycle Montpelier".