Chris Hargrave will lead an all-day cycle in Portsmouth's Guildhall Square for Help For Heroes. He will be joined by up to a dozen former and serving soldiers, local cadets and members of forces charities.

All will take turns on exercise bikes and rowing machines from 8am until late in the evening on Saturday, December 19.

The 26-year-old, a former private in the Royal Logistics Corps, who was sent to the Arabian Gulf in 2001 to deliver supplies for the invasion of Afghanistan, has named the event Remember The Fallen.

'I'm hoping we will meet thousands of people and raise support for our forces in the run up to Christmas,' he said.

'I've contacted firms and they've agreed to lend us equipment so we can have continuous cycling and rowing. We know times are tight but I feel strongly that we have a duty to remember our servicemen as much as we can.'

Mr Hargrave, from North End, Portsmouth, has been promised support by several local firms including Club Roko in Portsmouth, Powerhouse Fitness Centre in Havant and drinks manufacturer Red Bull.

He said: 'I've had a good response from companies, and it should make it an interesting event for people doing their Christmas shopping.

'Everything we make will go to Help For Heroes, which is an absolutely fantastic charity. I've lost friends in Afghanistan over the last few years, and you have to remember that thousands of these people didn't imagine 10 years ago that we would have been in two very difficult wars. I was on guard duty at Marchwood when the Twin Towers were attacked, and I remember my boss handing me a helmet and saying we were on black alert.

'We ask a lot of our servicemen and I'm trying to do my best to support them.'

Gary Collins, from Club Roko, said: 'We're delighted to assist in any way we can towards any event for service peronnel. We're proud to be sponsoring the UK Remember The Fallen event for Help for heroes.'

» To find out more visit the website defensasecurity.com/fallen.html