Skydive To: The Nordics. Four Countries, One Very Ambitious Ben
Most people plan a Nordic adventure around a nice hotel and a very large cinnamon bun. Ben Bradley has gone for four skydives, an Arctic crossing, a skyathlon, a 315-kilometre cycle and a coast-to-coast run. Subtle, as ever.
Skydive To: The Nordics (Challenge Series) is Ben's next fundraising challenge, with a £50,000 target for CALM, Combat Stress and Rock2Recovery. Ben leads The Council of Bens and is a director of COBWOB CIC. This time, the man encouraging everyone else to get involved is putting his own legs, lungs and parachute to work.
Four countries. Four skydives. An extremely full itinerary.
The plan is a skydive in each country before taking on a different endurance challenge:
Norway: an Arctic crossing.
Finland: a skyathlon, bringing swimming, cycling and running into the adventure.
Sweden: a 315-kilometre cycle.
Denmark: a coast-to-coast run.
Yes, the skydive is the beginning of each leg. Apparently landing safely and going for lunch was too straightforward. Ben, who is based in Knutsford near Manchester, is aiming for late May or June 2027. Final dates and route details will be shared as planning progresses.
Why returning to Norway matters
Behind the big idea is a very personal reason for going.
Ben served in the Royal Marines for nearly eight years and left nearly a year ago. While deployed in Norway, teaching military skills in the Arctic environment, he suffered a serious knee injury. It led to ACL and MCL reconstruction and a recovery that changed much more than his fitness.
He went from being fit, active and looking towards the next stage of his military career to being unable to walk. The loss of that momentum had a profound effect on his mental health, including a major depressive episode.
This challenge will be his first return to Norway since that injury. He wants to turn a place associated with a painful chapter into the starting point for something positive: raising money for organisations supporting mental health, the military community and people in crisis.
As Ben puts it, his motivation is “to prove to myself that I walk the walk as well as talk the talk.”
From rallying the Benpire to taking on the challenge
The Council of Bens has always been good at turning a wonderfully daft starting point into a reason to bring people together. The name gets people talking. What people do together is what makes it matter.
Ben says that, so far in 2026, people attending his events and fundraising independently through them have raised nearly £50,000. Skydive events have been a big part of that effort and helped inspire this next adventure.
That community fundraising is separate from the new £50,000 target for Skydive To: The Nordics. There is a fresh mountain to climb here. Figuratively. There is already quite enough on the itinerary.
Three causes with a personal connection
The challenge is raising funds for CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), Combat Stress and Rock2Recovery. These causes reflect Ben's own experience of injury, recovery, military life and the importance of having support when life changes direction.
His longer-term ambition is to develop challenge events that other people can take part in, using what he learns from doing this first expedition himself.
Help this Ben go a very long way
You do not need a parachute, a bike or even the name Ben to help:
Donate through the official GiveStar fundraising page.
Share the story with friends, workplaces, community groups and anyone who enjoys an ambitious idea with a good cause behind it.
Connect us with journalists, radio producers, businesses or people who could help the challenge reach a wider audience.
For interviews, community involvement or partnership enquiries, email Ben@TheCouncilOfBens.com. Follow Ben’s training at @benbra.cob, alongside @TheCouncilOfBens and @Cobwob.CIC for updates.
Four countries. One Ben. A £50,000 reason to get behind him.
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