A HEREFORDSHIRE triathlete says it was amazing to be part of history after becoming the first woman to complete a near 3,000 mile cycle race across Europe.

Sue Pugh, from Allensmore, was part of Team Viribus Audax that completed the event in eight days, 20 hours and 20 minutes – smashing the previous record by more than 27 hours. The race starts in Calais and goes north through the French Ardennes before crossing the River Rhine into Germany.

It then climbs briefly into the Black Forest and onto a high that traverses east across Germany into Austria before heading south into Italy before entering Slovenia.

The route then descends back into Italy, crossing the Col de Larche and back into France.

Riding through Provence, cyclists climb over Mont Ventoux before heading south into the Languedoc Roussillion to cross the eastern Pyrenees into Spain.

Pugh said she decided to take up a different challenge this year after suffering some significant back injuries.

"Being in the Royal Air Force having represented Great Britain Age Group Triathlon teams for several years, I knew I needed a challenge to keep myself motivated," she said.

"So when I was approached by some colleagues to be part of a team to complete the Race Across Europe I jumped at the chance.

"Spain provides consistently good road cycling all the way to the orange groves of Andalucia and the final rolling roads to Gibraltar, with views of the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and mountainous North African coastline."

Not only did Pugh's team want to complete it, they also wanted to beat the previous record and Pugh wanted to claim the title of the first female to attempt and complete this iconic race. The team also wanted to raise awareness of Scotties Little Soldiers, a charity dedicated to supporting bereaved British Forces children.

"Completing this race and travelling through some of the countries, climbs and areas we have been through has been a truly fantastic experience for myself and the whole team," added Pugh.

"The four riders have effectively had the easy job of cycling whilst our nine-man support crew including a massage therapist and mechanic, kindly provided by Dassi Bikes, have had a harder job of keeping us fuelled, fed, rested, waking us up for the next shift, driving us from the end of our eight-hour stint to the next location when the other pair would finish there's, they have had even less sleep than us.

"The low points have certainly been the night shift, cycling at 2 to 4am, your legs want to keep going but your body just wants to sleep.

"And also the hail storms, thunder, lightning and torrential rain that greeted us as we left France into Spain.

"We had not expected that at all especially as it was just getting light.

"The highs were the fantastic bucket list climbs, like the Col Del Agnello, Mont Ventoux, Virsc Pass, riding through the Zaragoza, Pyrenees and passing some of the lakes, dams, waterfalls and mountain ranges."

"Spending eight days and 20hours cycling through fantastic places and being part of a truly memorable race is something that can never be taken away from any of us.

"And, as the first female to complete it, no one can take that away from me."

Anyone who would like further information about the race or to donate to Scotties Little Soldiers can visit justgiving.com/Viribus-Audax or email Sue Pugh at pugh_sue@hotmail.com