A Hemingford Grey man left commuters bemused as he used the guided busway cyclepath to train for a cross-country ski marathon.

The Hunts Post: Gordon Fuller at the end of the Cross-country Marathon in Engardin, SwitzerlandGordon Fuller at the end of the Cross-country Marathon in Engardin, Switzerland (Image: Archant)

Gordon Fuller, 54, trained for the 26.2-mile course at Engadin in Switzerland by using roller skis, travelling along the pathway next to the busway.

The Hunts Post: Cross-country Marathon in Engardin, SwitzerlandCross-country Marathon in Engardin, Switzerland (Image: Archant)

He said: “There were a few people on the buses who caught me training between Swavesey and St Ives who looked oddly at me, wondering what I was doing. The busway was the only place I could train as it is smooth enough to keep my balance on 50mm-wide skis.”

The Hunts Post: Cross-country Marathon in Engardin, SwitzerlandCross-country Marathon in Engardin, Switzerland (Image: Archant)

Mr Fuller’s wife Juliet, 57, was also due to take part in the marathon on March 10, but broke her wrist after falling while practising days before the run.

Mr Fuller completed the course in four hours, 39 minutes and 59.5 seconds.

“I had never done anything like this in my life. I row but I don’t row all that much these days due to a back injury so it was a challenge,” he told The Hunts Post.

He took part in the marathon for Si-Kanda, a charity started by his friend Jose Carlos who gave up work to help ‘Pepenadores’ – landfill workers in his home town of Oaxaca, Mexico – first by giving them protective wear and now by building homes for them.

So far he has raised £960 but hopes to break the £1,000-barrier.

INFORMATION: To find out more about Si-Kanda visit www.si-kanda.org