In February 2010 i am planning to climb Kilimanjaro along with my brother Steve, with the fantastic charity Climb Your Mountain. (www.climbyourmountain.org) Not only is this a once in a life time opportunity for myself and a real goal to work towards and achieve, but it is also an opportunity to raise money for Climb Your Mountain, a charity which does amazing work with many individuals.

Donating through Justgiving is quick, easy and totally secure. It’s also the most efficient way to sponsor me and if you’re a UK taxpayer, Justgiving makes sure 25% in Gift Aid, plus a 3% supplement, are added to your donation. So please sponsor me now!
                                                    

Rachael's Blog:

3/08/09 I decided it was about time to start some training....i went for an hours uphill walk and managed to cover a distance of 5km. Came away feeling brilliant....the next day my hip hurt loads...brilliant start!!! On a plus side though my boots were really comfy

5/08/09 Got my hands on some waterproof trousers and jacket today...Starting to get things together for my kit :) I will be climbing Scafell pike this weekend-will let you all know how it goes :D

10/08/09 Ok so the waterproofs i got didn't work! I was soaked through to the bone and freezing cold. The climb up Scafell Pike was very challenging and it made me realise i need to do lots of training. We didnt quite make it to the top because the weather got worse and so we had to turn back as it was too dangerous. Never mind, the climb was very good and we all had a good laugh :)

12/08/09 Great news! A work colleauge of mine - Karen Brasher is going to do the Great South run in Portsmouth on October 25th. She will complete a brilliant 10 miles (thats a half marathon) and any sponsorship she receives she is willing to donate towards the Kilimanjaro fund and raise money for Climb Your Mountain :) Brilliant!

23/08/09 Did a car boot sale for the first time today....one word- MAD! Lots of hustle and bustle with serious buyers peering through the window of my car but once i was set up it was fine. At the end of the day i had raised £140 for the Kili pot :D Thankyou to everyone who donated things for me to sell- it has helped me raise lots of money!

13/09/09 Did ANOTHER car boot sale today....didn't enjoy setting up in the pitch black-was a bit weird! However lots of items sold and managed to raise £109....thankyou to those who provided car boot items. I would also like to say thank you to my mum who has now got up at 5 am twice to help me with the car boot sales...couldn't have done it without her :D

11 and 12/10/09 A very busy weekend. Saturday involved myself and my brother bag packing at ASDA....i have to admit that Steve made more money than me....but never mind i will just have to beat him at the tin collections! Then on Sunday we did another car boot sale....and yes ....i got drenched! Despite this the weekend was a real success and i managed to raise another £115 ....now nearly halfway there :)

21/10/09 Did a cake sale at Allianz today- had a profit of £50 so myself and Steve split the money and came away with £25 each. I also sold lots of raffle tickets for the i-tunes voucher which will be drawn on the 3rd Nov!!!

23/10/09 Today was a fantastic day! Alison Dodd's tutor group at the college organized a Halloween party to raise money for my kili pot....Lots of students went in dressed up, there was music, face painting, apple bobbing, cake sales, twister and LOTS more! I had a brilliant day, the students were amazing and everyone had a  fantastic day....Alison and her tutor group raised a grand total of .....£140 almost treble the target set! AMAZING!

14/11/09 Massive Thank you to Karen who completed the Great South run in 1 hour 35 mins!!!! BRILLIANT, the grand total that she has raised is £199......FANTASTIC....thankyou to Karen and everyone who sponsored her x

30/11/09 Fundraising event at the Living Room Milton keynes - A big thankyou to everyone who came along to this evening - it was an absolutely fantastic night and everyone had great fun with amazing food. Another big thankyou to all the staff at the Living Room for helping to organize the evening and taking care of everyone. The brilliant news....a grand total of £500 was raised - so a big thankyou to everyone who bought raffle tickets and got involved in the live auction! (Thankyou to MK Dons for donating the signed football shirt, the Living room for donating the cocktail making experience, MK Pole Fitness for the free pole group class and Aerial extreme for a free family ticket for the assault course)

14/01/10 Received some bad news today :( unfortunately i have been diagnosed with pleurisy! I am currently taking antibiotics and resting as much as possible. I will not be going on the Snowdon training trip as i need to rest instead.... I am determined to get better and i will do my best- so watch this space! In the meantime, a colleague of Steve has organized a ladies night to raise money for us! If you would like to come along please contact me: 07969951729 - Its at the Marle Inn (Wolverton Road) at 7.30pm on 27th Jan - it should be a brilliant night, fun and games and a stripper - tickets are £10 and all money will be donated to mine and Steve's Kilimnajro fundraising pot!

22/01/10 My tutor group at college helped organize a raffle and a cake sale....we raised £130 :) A big thankyou to everyone who donated gifts for the raffle and to those who baked cakes. Big thankyou to my tutor group - all students helped and made it a success. One more thankyou.....Thankyou to Becky Caine and her tutor group who have raised approximately £60 through various different activities, including guess the number of sweets in a jar!

01/02/10 its now 4 days away.... I am packed and ready to rock and roll.....Mount Kilimanjaro here we come!!!

 

For those of you who would like to track our progress, please visit the following website where you can see our position in real-time:

 

http://www.mytrackingpanel.com/vemapsilverlight/

The user name is: simon

The password is: collinge

 

Simon is also completing a mini blog where he will update with news and events from the climb - you can read this by visiting:

 

http://returntokilimanjaro.blogspot.com/