The anti-GM cyclist Jonny Barton failed to complete the ninth day of his journey from Inverness to London yesterday due to knee injury. It was his ninth day on the road which was to have taken him from York to Sheffield. But a slightly stiff knee in the morning developed into intense pain some 30 miles from Sheffield and he was forced to stop cycling. Activists in Sheffield sorted out a vehicle to take him, his bike and the 5 foot 'GM is the death of consumer choice' coffin to Sheffield.

However Mary Keynes completed the first stage of her bike ride from Leeds yesterday clearly proving age is no barrier to using the most environmentally friendly form of transport there is. Mary is 73 and arrived at Tinsley some 40 minutes ahead of schedule. She was intending to cycle to London with Jonny over the next 3 days. But with no partner she is now reluctant to go it alone because she is not very good with bike repairs.

Mary isn't a regular long distance cyclist but managed to bike it over to the recent protests against the G8 summits in Genoa, Italy and Evian in France. The trip to Genoa included travelling around 60 - 70 miles per day and crossing the snow capped alps on the French-Italian border.

Mary arrived at Sheffield Town Hall at 5pm to be greeted by a warm but noisy reception from the Sheffield Samba Band. She spoke outside the Town Hall on the dangers of GM along with Bernard Little of the Sheffield Green Party.

Other cyclists as well as pedestrians, tractors and trollies will be making their way to the Friends of Earth 'Trollies and Tractors' rally in London on the 13th October.



FOE event in London:  http://www.tractorandtrolley.com
Greengloves pledge supported by Jonny:  http://www.greengloves.org
Map of planned journey and Jonny's personal statement:  http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/sheffield/2003/10/278387.html