Marathon cyclist talks to camera to beat the blues

A video diary with a difference is being made by a Scot cycling the length of the Americas.

Mark Beaumont, previously the record holder for the fastest round-the-world cycle ride, talks to his camera not only as a record of his trip, but as a way of keeping the blues at bay.

He's even gone as far as naming the camera 'Wilson' – a nod to Captain Scott's fated 1911 Polar Expedition, perhaps? - and is in regular conversation with it as he cycles alone for long periods of time.

The 27-year-old Fife man is now just a week away from finishing his 13,000-mile journey from Anchorage in Alaska to Ushuaia in southern Argentina.

During the adventure he has climbed to the summits of North and South America's highest mountains – Mount McKinley, which stands at 20,321ft, and Mount Aconcagua, 22,841ft .

Beaumont has been joined by a BBC cameraman three times but only for a few days. For much of the eight-month journey he has cycled alone, with only his camera for companionship.

The Fife cyclist told the Scotsman newspaper: "My constant companions on this journey have been my bike, and my camera. The bike has no name but I call the camera Wilson, as for long periods it's the only thing I talk to.

"Nine months is a very long time to travel like this. People have travelled alone by bike for much longer but not at such a pace, with such specific focus.

"At times it stopped feeling like an expedition and became simply my lifestyle, cycling all day, living wild, eating where I could find food.

"Time often loses relevance when alone for so long."

Beaumont should reach the finish line around 19 February.