Children in Need: Cyclist creates Pudsey with 50-mile ride

A cyclist has finished a special bike ride, tracing a path that outlines the shape of Pudsey Bear to support Children in Need.

On Saturday, Rebecca Laurel rode her bike for around five hours in Leicester, traveling 50 miles (80km) to create the image of the BBC charity mascot on Strava, an application that tracks physical activities.

"It's pretty sluggish when you're weaving through the downtown area," the 25-year-old remarked.

To date, she has collected over £370 with her project, which was inspired by a challenge from BBC Radio Leicester during a conversation about her earlier creation—a skeleton-themed ride designed for Halloween.

"I simply choose rides that match the season," Ms. Laurel stated.

“Christmas, Halloween, Easter. I created a ride shaped like a crown for the coronation event.”

Ms. Laurel mentioned that her interest in cycling began after the London 2012 Olympics when she and her brother became members of a cycling club.

During the lockdown, she began to design her rides to mimic animals and various themed objects.

"I was mapping out a path just to find out its length," she mentioned.

"As I was working on it, I reached around the two-thirds mark and realized, 'Hey, this kind of resembles a llama'."

I mapped out the remaining route to resemble the shape of a llama.

Then I had an idea: if I attach some antlers and a red nose, I could create a reindeer.

From that point on, it gained traction and became quite popular on social media.

"I figured, 'Sure, I'll try making a few more of these.'"

Her newest work required "a few hours of planning" and drew inspiration from her earlier creations.

Ms. Laurel announced that her upcoming themed ride would cover approximately 90 miles (145 kilometers) and would be designed in the form of a snowman.