TWO men are preparing to travel across the Atlantic to raise money for charity.

Andrew "Tommo" Thompson and Jon Wingfield are both taking to the streets for the New York Marathon on November 7.

Andrew, a 32-year-old electrician from Rubery, will be running the 26-mile course to raise money for Bromsgrove Lions.

It will be his second marathon after competing in Dublin last year, returning a credible time of four hours and he hopes to do even better this time.

"I am running more than 30 miles a week to make sure that I am in shape," said Andrew, who lives in Great Farley Drive, Great Park. "Most of my running is done when I get home from work and I will train four days each week."

Jon, a housemaster and head of economics at Bromsgrove School, is hoping to raise more than £2,000 for charity Dreams Come True, which sends sick and terminally ill children on trips of a lifetime.

The 33-year-old said: "I was reading through a magazine and read about the work they do and it moved me to do it."

Jon, who got engaged to wife Nicola in New York, is currently running up to 40 miles a week and plans to step that up nearer the time.

He added: "I figured I may only have one marathon in me so why not do it somewhere that means something?"

However, Nicola will not be travelling as she is expecting their first child.