MOTORBIKE-MAD friends are planning to travel 2,500 miles around Britain to raise money to help servicemen and women.

Eight workers from US motorbike firm Harley-Davidson’s European headquarters, in Garsington Road, Cowley, will head to the four corners of Britain in aid of Help for Heroes.

The trip in May will criss-cross England and Scotland in just three days as the group bids to raise a “significant” amount for the forces’ charity.

Organiser Phil Harpley, 47, from Eynsham, said it would be the biggest motorbike trip any of them had ever done. The route will take them to the Lizard, in Cornwall; Lowestoft, in Suffolk; Ardnamurchan Point, on the west coast of Scotland; and Dunnet Head, in the north of Scotland.

Mr Harpley added: “It’s an epic trip for us, in a really short period of time. It’s a long way and we’re only giving ourselves three days to complete it. It will be a challenge, but we will all have our Harleys.

“We’re all colleagues and it just started out as rough idea. Since then it has really grown, as more people wanted to get involved.”

Mr Harpley, who works in IT, was an RAF chef for 23 years, part of which he spent at RAF Benson.

He said: “Having been in the forces for so long, Help for Heroes is obviously close to my heart.

“We all know people who have served here or abroad, and another of the lads coming along on the ride was in the Army.

“All of us wanted to do what we can to raise money for the charity, because it does so much important work for so many people who have left the services.

“The prospect of the ride is very exciting and I think we are all looking forward to it.”

Help for Heroes, which was launched in September 2007, gives grants that aim to provide “practical, direct support for our wounded service personnel”. So far it has raised more than £38 m.

Its current focus is to build recovery houses across the UK to provide the last stage of rehabilitation before a veteran returns to civilian life.

A spokesman said: “The fund- raising efforts of big-hearted individuals and organisations have turned Help for Heroes from a good idea into a phenomenon.”

The Harley-Davidson team is setting up a fundraising web page. Details will be published in the Oxford Mail once the page is online.