TEENAGE quad racing sensation Ashley McConnell raised £570 for the Billy's Ray of Hope campaign in Basingstoke, England, at the weekend.

As he embarked on his biggest ever challenge, competing in the 2007 QRA Great 8 Challenge, the Fintona lad convinced the organisers to allow him to help raise money to send Billy for treatment in Chicago. Ashley was riding his 700cc Yamaha Raptor in the Ironman class, involving eight hours of near continuous racing. The 16-year-old managed to complete the eight-hour challenge over varied terrain in a respectable 10th place and was by far the highest placed under-21 in the field.

Ashley's father George, a member of his back-up team, explained, "We decided only last week to try and hold a fundraising event while over in England competing. We told the organisers why Ashley wanted to race for Billy and they immediately agreed.

"We managed to raise £570 from the buckets, but we hope to raise more in the coming weeks at later events."