Dame Judi Dench cash boost to Ilkley cyclist's pan-USA challenge

Antony Butcher said he had "burst into tears" when he finally reached the summit of the 10,000ft high Cameron pass

A cyclist pedalling across the USA to raise money for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) said a donation from Dame Judi Dench had left him "reeling".

Antony Butcher, 32, from Ilkley, whose mother suffers from MS, began his 4,000-mile journey in New York.

He set off from Times Square in April and has so far ridden 2,500 miles.

Mr Butcher, who hoped to raise £20,000, said he was "flabbergasted" when he realised Dame Judi had chipped in £2,000.

He said Dame Judi sent the donation in the form of a cheque in the post to his home address.

Mr Butcher said his wife had held up the cheque for him to see on a video call.

"It was just before I reached my target of £20,000 and it pushed me right up to the edge - I screamed and jumped up and down," he said.

Mr Butcher said the surprise donation was "a huge boost" to his fundraising.

Dame Judi Dench suprised Antony Butcher with a £2,000 contribution to his fundraising for the MS Society

Explaining the unexpected donation he said: "My dad was dentist to Judi Dench's daughter for a period of time and she had remembered my mum."

On Monday, as he began the final leg of his journey in Utah, Mr Butcher said the endeavour so far was "tougher than expected and after two months on the bike everything is aching".

As he entered his 16th US state and prepared to tackle the Sierra Nevada mountain range he said: "I've just come over the Rocky Mountains and am heading to Salt Lake City before 10 days of cycling through the desert.

"Then there's a third mountain range to get over and the wind is blowing a real hoolie, so I'm having to fight for every mile."

Mr Butcher said he had paused above the Missouri River on the border between Iowa and Nebraska using a bridge named Bob

'Whooping all the way'

Mr Butcher said the journey had taken a toll on him physically so far, especially the mountain climbs.

After two days acclimatising in the Rockies at 5,000 ft (1,542 m), he said he had cycled a further 5,000 ft to the top "buffeted by winds all the way."

And in Iowa 50mph (80kph) gales had forced him from his bike after it became "too hard to keep it upright".

But, when he crossed the Utah border, he said he had been greeted by the sight of the "beautiful Blue Mountain" and best of all "the road went downhill and I was just whooping on the bicycle all the way down."

In Iowa Mr Butcher stopped when 50mph gales made it hard to keep his bike upright

He said it was difficult being by himself but that he had enjoyed the company of people he stayed with who saw his Britishness as a novelty.

However, on one occasion his accent meant he found himself in demand as a narrator.

"I found myself reading Harry Potter to the six and eight-year-old children of people I was staying with in Chicago.

"They were big Harry Potter fans and when they passed me the book the first sentence was the moment Dumbledore died and the next chapters were all about his death and funeral.

"They were saying 'but why did he die?'

"I though they're never going to want to speak to a Brit again."

Mr Butcher said so far Colorado with its "open prairie grasslands" was the most beautiful state he had seen

Mr Butcher said he was on course to finish his pan-USA ride on 13 July and thanks to the generous donation by Dame Judi Dench he had raised his fundraising target from £20,000 to £30,000.

"This bike ride is unbelievably immense," he said.

"I've had a great time with everyone I've stayed with, but then I get back on the bike and sit by myself a long way from my family, my friends and my cats.

"I still can't get my head around the fact I'm cycling across a country and it has made me think of all the reasons I'm doing this and all the challenges mum has faced."