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Woman's tandem bike ride challenge after baby loss

Holly Phillips
BBC News, Yorkshire
Mark Ansell/ BBC Abigail Riley and her brother Ben Riley sat on a tandem bike. Abigail is sitting on the back seat, wearing a white long-sleeve sports top and black cycling shorts. She is also wearing a white helmet and sunglasses. Ben is sitting on the front seat and is wearing a burgundy long-sleeve sports jacket with one white and one black horizontal stripe over the chest. He is also wearing a white helmet and sunglasses. They are both looking at the camera and smiling, with their left hands holding the bike up, their left foot on the pedal and their right foot on the concrete. There is black fencing behind them and a green field with an area of concrete beyond. The sky is blue. Mark Ansell/ BBC
Abigail and her brother Ben plan to cycle from Ravenglass to Tynemouth in three days

A woman whose baby died days before she was due to give birth is cycling 180 miles on a tandem bike with her brother to raise money for charity.

Abigail Riley, from Sheffield, lost her baby, Stanley, at 39 weeks of pregnancy, and was diagnosed with eye cancer five months later.

She will be riding coast-to-coast from Ravenglass to Tynemouth over three days on the 50-year-old bike with her brother, Ben, to raise money for baby loss charity Tommy's and Sheffield Hospitals Charity.

Abigail said: "I just hope that if anybody else is suffering with any sort of grief or any traumatic events in their life, they might hear this story and think: we can keep going."

In June 2024, Abigail was days away from giving birth when Stanley's heart stopped beating. No reason has been found for the death of her and her partner Joe Tyrell's son.

"What has happened with losing Stanley has been absolutely soul destroying," Abigail said.

Handout Abigail Riley and Joe Tyrell. Abigail is stood on the left, wearing a patterned playsuit. She has blonde hair and is holding her baby bump. Joe is stood on the right and is wearing a black shirt over a white t-shirt. She has short ginger hair and short facial stubble. He is holding Abigail's baby bump. There are crowds of people stood behind them inside. Handout
Abigail and Joe's son, Stanley, died days before he was due to be born

Later that year, in November, Abigail was diagnosed with cancer in her left eye.

She said: "There are some days where I don't want to get out of bed, but, overall, I think to myself, you have a choice and when you're feeling totally powerless, ultimately, the power lies within you.

"One thing it has definitely taught me is to live in the present and to enjoy the moment because, after Stanley died, it brings it to the forefront of your mind that tomorrow isn't promised.

"Enjoy the people who are in your life and find reasons to smile every day because you've just got to keep going."

Mark Ansell/ BBC Abigail Riley and her brother Ben Riley riding a tandem bike. Abigail is sat on the back seat of the bike, wearing a white long sleeve sports top and black cycling shorts. She is also wearing a white helmet and sunglasses. Ben is sat on the front seat of the bike and is wearing a burgundy long sleeve sports jacket with one white an done black horizontal stripe over the chest. He is also wearing a white helmet and sunglasses. The are cycling on a path. There is black fencing on the left of the path and grass beyond. Mark Ansell/ BBC
Abigail has already raised £23,000 for charity

Having already raised £23,000 for charity, Abigail's brother, Ben, jokingly suggested they ride a tandem bike from one side of the country to the other - a challenge she accepted.

The pair set off from Ravenglass, a coastal village in west Cumbria, on Friday.

Ben said the bike was "horrendous" to ride because of its limited gears and "shocking" brakes.

"But it's helped that we get Abigail out and about and helped get her fitness up," he added.

"You can have a good chat on the tandem and put the world to rights."

Abigail and Ben aim to arrive in Tynemouth, in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, on Sunday.

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