Four Fermanagh charity cyclists who are today (Thursday) due to finish their marathon effort biking from the north to the south of Ireland began their odyssey at the weekend on perhaps one of the wettest days this summer.

The four, James Hamill, Ben Ovens, Sharwan Varma and Stephen Wilson, who are members of Enniskillen Round Table set off from Malin Head on Sunday and covered the first leg of their journey in appallingly wet conditions.

"It was 98 miles, very hard miles," commented James Hamill, who was speaking en route during the cycle earlier this week.

"The conditions were treacherous. It was very difficult in the wind and the rain. It was the danger aspect of it more than anything else. We had a couple of falls and a couple of punctures. The majority of it was done in heavy rain and the roads were busy," he said. In spite of the conditions, the cyclists arrived in Enniskillen in six and half hours where they had tea at the Westville Hotel.

The Head to Head Cycle, Malin to Mizen, aims to raise funds for the Northern Ireland Chest, Heart and Stroke Association.

On Monday, they cycled the 90 miles from Enniskillen to Athlone, spending six hours in the saddle. And on Tuesday, they carried on to Ennis. Yesterday saw them cycle to Killarney and today they are on the home straight to Mizen Head, considered one of the hilliest sections of the route.

"We have had an odd ache and pain. We are eating well and keeping hydrated. Our two support vehicles have been good," said James, who is also this year's President of Enniskillen Round Table.

The four are accompanied by James' father David Hamill, a member of Enniskillen Rotary Club, his father-in-law Melvin Schofield and Joey Kelly, who travels ahead in a campervan to set up for lunch and breaks.

Also with them is Robert Wilson, whose business is making custom bikes and who helped them create a training schedule that will see four non-cyclists peddle the length of Ireland in five days.

"The training definitely paid off. The hard miles over the last couple of months are paying off, no question about it. I am glad we put in as much hard work as we did," said James.

The group is on schedule to complete the 444-mile trip tonight. "No doubt we will have a few pints of Guinness," said James.

"We are really enjoying it. The supporters are good and we are keeping ourselves going. There is plenty of joking and messing around.

The roads are much busier than I would have anticipated. We are trying to keep the momentum going. We stop every one and a half to two hours for 15 to 20 minutes. People are running out from the Main Street in towns to wish us all the best. The van ahead of us lets them know what we are doing," he said.

So far the group has raised £15,000 with more expected to come in. A charity barbecue to welcome the cyclists home will take place on Sunday, August 30 at the Moorings, outside Bellanaleck and everyone is welcome to come and support them.