‘Two Blokes. One Tandem. 24 Hours. What could possibly go wrong?’
Left to right: Luke Mayo and Dane Sanderson on a training ride.(Image: Luke Mayo)
A young dad who is slowly losing his sight as a result of a genetic disorder is taking on a 220-mile tandem bike ride over just 24 hours, to raise funds for the charity which has provided a lifeline. Luke Mayo, of Hull, was just four when he was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa, and was officially registered as blind by the time he was 16.
As a teenager, however, he was still able to cycle on his own bike around the coast and surrounding countryside with his pals, including best mate Dane Sanderson, who he has known since year 7 from their days at Kingswood College of Arts, East Hull. However, the 30-year-old’s vision has since degenerated to the point that he can see just a small part of the world around him, comparing his remaining sight to looking through a straw.
He also has to contend the fact that one day he will lose his vision entirely, and possibly only be able to distinguish day from night. Now, he and Dane are weeks away from making an epic 24-hour journey on a tandem bike, from Southport to Hornsea on the Transpennine Trail, all to raise money for the charity Sight Support Hull & East Yorkshire.
The registered charity aims to improve the quality of life for people with sight loss across Hull and East Yorkshire, relying totally on donations as it receives no Government funding. Luke, who is married to Savannah and has a two-year-old son, Rory, said the charity has helped him come to terms with his condition, which is giving him the courage to take part in the daring fundraiser.
As Luke puts it: “Two Blokes. One Tandem. 24 Hours. What could possibly go wrong? In 2012 I was officially registered blind, and now in 2026 I only have a very small amount of vision left.
“That’s why we’ll be doing the ride on a tandem bike, which means Dane has taken on the very important job of steering…” He added that despite it being a long ride, the main motivator throughout was for the wonderful cause the duo are supporting.
Luke, who is self-employed and works alongside his dad, who is a joiner, says he and Dane will set off around 4am on Saturday June 20, and will likely take a full day to make the arduous journey. Setting off from the other side of the country they will only make short stops to take on energy gels. A longer stop is planned halfway for a more substantial meal, however.
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They will be making the journey solo – but say their family and friends will be waiting to greet them at the finish line in Hornsea, at around 4am on Sunday, June 21. In the build up to the big day they have been making lots of training rides, especially night-time trips – clocking up the miles while dodging the occasional pheasant in the dark, and battling headwinds and rain storms.
He said: “I think we’re nervous, but we’re really looking forward to the challenge. I used to be able to ride by myself when I was younger, but Dane and I got the tandem last year. We left it quite a while before getting on it, but we took to it so well.
“You’ve both got to have good teamwork. Going uphill is a lot more difficult carrying more weight, but coming down hill you pick up speed – our top speed has been 49.51mph. Also we never realised we’d get this when we started but every time we go out, we always get people shouting at us, things like ‘your bike is so cool!’ especially on the night.
“For the 24 hour ride, it’s going to be unbelievably hard, I think. We’ll take an energy gel, or any kind of energy we can get in, every 10 miles. They’ll get a little bit sickly after a while but we’re trying to keep the weight down on the bike as much as possible and get quick energy because we’re burning it off so fast.”
Luke says he put his head in the sand over his condition for many years.
He said: “As a teenager, I ignored it a lot, like, I just didn’t accept any help whatsoever. And I just kind of got on with my life. But Sight Support has been really good, and it helps a lot of people in the same sort of circumstances as myself.
“My sight that’s left is like looking through a tiny straw. So, I have no peripheral vision and if I’m stood in front of you I’ll only see one of your eyes. And it’s still declining. I just can’t put time on it. It keeps going until I might be able to tell the difference between night and day, but I will lose all vision. Having good family and friends always helps me through it.”
Luke says they have had huge support from charity-based bike shop R-evolution, which has supported the pair with not one but two tandem bikes in the run-up to the big day. Their original bike came apart this week during what was supposed to be their biggest training ride – a 150-mile excursion. R-evolution has stepped in with a replacement tandem, which will be kitted out with Luke and Dane’s equipment.
He added: “They have been amazing. The bike just completely broke during our ride but they are giving us another bike to keep us on track.”
To donate to Luke and Dane’s tandem ride visit their fundraising page here.