More than 100 cyclists defied rain and blustery winds to raise at least £3,000 for Manorlands.

They took part in the inaugural Brontë BIGK CyKle Sportive.

The event was organised by sportKeighley and Sue Ryder Care.

Riders tested themselves on routes of between 4.8 and 88 miles.

They began and finished at the new Keighley campus of Leeds City College, in Dalton Lane, on Sunday.

They cycled out between a Shorn the Sheep sculpture and a Brontë Cow, to symbolise the landscape they would encounter.

The day featured the traditional 4.8-mile Race the Train, which started next to Keighley Station and climbed up Halifax Road to Oxenhope.

A Keighley and Worth Valley Railway diesel completed the scheduled 20-minute journey in just 16 minutes 28 seconds.

Only four of the cyclists in the group managed to beat the train up the Worth Valley.

The fastest finisher was Joe Moses, who managed 15 minutes and 57 seconds. Another rider, Andrew Blackwood, matched the train to the second.

All Race the Train finishers received a bacon butty and other goodies on their arrival at Oxenhope Station.

The sportive riders completed a loop around Haworth, Oakworth, Oldfield and Stanbury.

They then headed for Leeming, Cullingworth, Saltaire, Otley, Ilkley and East Morton. At this point 18 riders returned to Keighley, but 51 continued for the full 88 miles and 21 hills.

They ended with a tough stretch dubbed the “Murder Mile”, at Silsden, Cononley, Cowling Pinnacle and Keighley Tarn. The fastest along the 88-mile route was Stefan Macina in a time of five hours 30 minutes.

He, along with four others, managed to beat the average K&WVR steam train speed of 15mph for the journey.

Martin Peace was the first to complete the 65-mile loop, achieving a time of four hours and 21 minutes. He failed to beat the train by only one minute.

David Warden and Michael Thewlis shared a time of two hours and 40 seconds for the 42-mile loop and David Dobson was the first finisher on the 30-mile route.

Manorlands fundraiser Andrew Wood said: “I’d like to thank all who took part and volunteered at the event and a special thank you to John Dennis who came up with this fantastic format.”

John Dennis thanked the people who helped mark and marshal the course, as well as all the organisations involved in staging the challenge.