A SPINAL injury stopped Stephanie Jones for three months after she was thrown from her horse while riding near Didmarton in 2008.

Last month she was back in a different kind of saddle to raise money for charity.

The 24-year-old works for the Cirencester-based Bearing Plus Ltd in its Melksham office where she lives.

She completed a 310km cycle from London to Paris in three days, in the hope of raising around £42,000 for the Spinal Injuries Association.

“A lot of people told me Kent was flat. They lied,”she joked afterwards. “Everyone had a real reason to be supporting SIA and it was a really inspiring group of people.

“I was lucky no lasting damage was done during my accident. This is not always the case and these are the people I would like to help.”

“Because of the time difference in France we didn’t finish cycling until 3am and we were up again by nine the following day.”

Despite the difficulty of the challenge Stephanie said “I actually love my bike more than ever.”

SIA need about £2m each year to fund their peer led support for sufferers of spinal injuries, helping to connect people with others who have had similar experiences.

Paying tribute to the team Stephanie said “Everyone had a real reason to be supporting SIA and it was a really inspiring group of people.”

She also thanked her supporters at Bearings Plus Ltd and Classic Tours, who organised the route and support vehicle which helped with more than one puncture along the way.

To donate to Stephanie’s cause visit www.justgiving.com/shjones208cycle .