I thought it was time to set myself a little challenge before I hit 35 – so as always, I have left it to the last minute!! Just 14 days before my birthday, I hope to be sat in Kathmandu with a beer in my hand looking smug having just finished a little walk to the old Everest Base Camp!
To be honest, I have it easy. I am going on this trip to support my good friend Sam who has the nightmare challenge of running the world’s highest marathon which starts at Gorak Shep (the old Everest Base Camp). I am clearly not running the 26.2miles, but I am doing the trek and will be supporting all the runners during the actual marathon. My main task will be to use my dulcet northern voice to whoop like an idiot as Sam crosses the finish line.
So, what are the challenges I will face that make this a worthwhile plea for you to dig deep and part with some of your hard earned pennies? Well;
- the highest we will go is to Kala Pattar 5,623m (18,448 ft) That is nearly double the altitude of the plane I jumped out of which feels very wrong and much more painful!
- the temperatures will vary between +25C and -20C and we are only allowed to carry a small amount of kit, so I will smell horrific after day two.
- I won’t have easy access to chocolate so will have withdrawal symptoms as well as altitude sickness to contend with and;
- I will be surrounded by a gaggle of super fit and healthy people for 25 days…
So come on, that is surely enough to make you reach for your card and make a donation.
I have paid for the trip myself and taken unpaid leave from work to enable me to complete this challenge, so please make it worthwhile. Every penny you donate will go to the excellent charities below*
I have three charities. Unfortunately, because of Gift Aid, I can’t have one page for them all. So the links to each page are below.
The Everest Marathon Fund – this charity promotes health and education in Nepal and is one of the main reasons the Everest Marathon was established. Nepal is one of the five poorest countries in the world. http://www.justgiving.com/Amanda-Boughey
Multiple Sclerosis – many of you will know this is a charity I have supported for a number of years. They continue to carry out the vital research into this debilitating disease which still baffles scientists and remains incurable. http://www.justgiving.com/Amanda-Boughey0
The Stroke Association – this is for Matt’s sister, an active, healthy person who at just 39 years of age had a stroke. This charity not only continues to raise the profile of stroke, but also provides invaluable support to patients and their families as well as continuing to carry out essential research.
http://www.justgiving.com/Amanda-Boughey1
So, take your time, think how much you can spare, you can donate multiple times, to all three or just one charity.
Many thanks in advance for your support – it will make all those blisters worthwhile!
Amanda
*Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
