1,000 men and women are now gearing up for one of the Island's more gruelling sporting challenges - it's time for the annual End to End Challenge.

The Challenge sees competitors mountain biking from one end of the Isle of Man to the other, a distance of 47 miles, over wild and sometimes difficult terrain.

The race starts at the Point of Ayre lighthouse at 10am on Sunday morning (13th September) and finishes at the Sound, the Island's southernmost tip.

Event organiser Stephen Honeybone says, "The uniqueness of the race lies in the fact that, as well as riding the length of an entire country, the riders encounter tarmac, country roads, hills, grass tracks, fields and plantations. 

"Entrants come from all walks of life and ages.  There is an ex-Olympian in the form of last year’s winner Nick Craig and a TT rider, together with grandparents in their sixties. 

"Competitors are also coming from as far afield as Israel and Australia."

The Challenge was launched in 1996 and this year, reached its maximum limit of 1,000 entries, making it one of the Island's fastest growing events.

The event is being filmed by Greenlight TV and will be shown on SKY Sports in either late October or early November.

Find out more about the race, including the results from previous years, here.