THREE friends from a Monmouthshire school aiming to raise £10,000 for charity have taken part in a gruelling cycling challenge across the Pyrenees.

Lucas Wagner, Lucas Penn and Adam Hart pushed themselves to the limit in pedalling more than 450 miles in less than 100 hours as part of the Raid Pyrenean.

The Monmouth School pupils scaled memorable heights, including the Col du Tourmalet and the Col d'Aubisque, during the four-and-a-half day trip.

Lucas Penn’s dad, Rob, supported the trio with food and directions as they rode the length of the Pyrenees from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea.

The friends have so far raised £2,767 for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) and £4,675 for The Syrian Hands Up Foundation, as they aim to reach their target of raising £10,000.

Adam is the cousin of fellow Monmouth School pupil Frank Arentz, a former triathlon champion and high level rugby player, who has discovered a new love for music and photography after being diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a heart condition.

“The challenge proved hard - probably even harder than we initially expected,” said the 17-year-old.

“The amount of cycling was tough and I think we reached places, both mentally and physically, we had never been to before.

“It felt like we were part of a cycling team because we bonded together. We went through the same amount of pain and emotion and could sympathise and empathise with how each other felt.”

The boys started their journey in Hendaye and, during the challenge, successfully dealt with 11,000 metres of vertical ascent – the equivalent of cycling from Chepstow to Anglesey and back, and climbing Snowdon 10 times.

The teenagers eventually reached the finish at St Cyprien in 99 hours and 33 minutes – 27 minutes quicker than the specified time limit for the Raid Pyrenean.