ARMED with goodwill and clad in leather, bikers have taken to the roads to raise money for charity.

A motorbike convoy of around 80 enthusiasts headed from Queen Elizabeth's School in Wimborne driving nearly 30 miles towards Henstridge Airfield.

Once they arrived, they took it in turns to shoot up the runway in their mean machines, while gathered families watched on.

As soon as the petrol-heads had had their fill, visitors could enjoy some live music from the band Hot Lava Java, as well as the hog roast and activities that were on offer. Even a historic Westland Wasp helicopter made an appearance.

And it was all in the name of a good cause.

The money raised from the event, organised by Dawn Stokes, will go towards the Dorchester renal unit in the hope of giving people undergoing dialysis a bit more comfort during their visits.

One of those attending hospital for such treatment is Spencer Furley who was one of the bikers taking part.

He said it's important that people with kidney problems can have a bit more to do while they spend hours at the unit.

"It will help the unit in a lot of ways, especially in terms of comfort levels, like pillows, for example," he said.

"It can get a bit boring so we hope we can get some things for people to do. We hope to get some more equipment to make it a bit better. There is a scanner we're trying to raise funds for. Some people's veins are really hard to find and this projects an image of where the veins are, making it less painful.

"[The event] is basically to try and put out some information about organ donations too. A lot of people sign up for donations and sometimes relatives can block that decision, and then people don't get what they need."

The motorcyclists were supported by Dorset Police and the Unity Support Riders for their ride.

Spencer added: "It's the second year we have done it. We did it in August last year and raised about £2,500 last year and we hope to raise twice that this year."

Visit kidneyfundraisingconvoy.co.uk to donate to their cause.