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For those who haven't read the reason behind why we are doing the non-stop 125 mile Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race, then please read below.

Remember, all donations, no matter how large or small are greatly appreciated.

Friends and Colleagues

We want to tell you about Harry.

Harry is a friend, he is 41 and is married to Sally and has 2 lovely daughters. Harry has run a successful business for 13 years with his business partner Jim Jeffries.  Harry is regarded by his friends as being incredibly generous, kind and above all huge fun to be with.  Harry has a huge appetite for life, always an active person having played rugby for most of his life and enjoyed sports of every kind, his energy and positivity is infectious; and this makes him an absolute pleasure to spend time with.

So why are we telling you this?

It is because something has happened to Harry. In November 2007 Harry was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease which is ultimately a fatal condition and for which there is currently no cure. What is amazing is that since the diagnosis, nothing I have said to describe Harry has changed, apart from now only watching sports; his outlook to life carries the same enthusiasm as before the diagnosis , an enormous quality  and for those that have experienced it have huge admiration.

MND is a progressive nerve degeneration disease that attacks the upper and lower motor neurones, cells which send signals from the brain to muscles. Degeneration of the motor neurones leads to weakness and wasting of muscles causing increasing loss of mobility in the limbs and difficulties with speech, swallowing and breathing.

In just over a year basic functions such as balance, descending stairs, writing and everyday conversations have become a daily challenge for Harry.  Recently Harry has suffered from some serious facial injuries as he has lost the ability to put his hands out in front of him when he falls. Harry being Harry smiles through his black eyes and stitches, shrugs his shoulders and says “let’s put it down to a drinking injury” or just "oh well it's just par for the course-just get on with it"

Harry would like to raise awareness of Motor neurone disease and raise funds for research towards a cure and we want to help Harry achieve this. To do this we have embarked on our own challenge of attempting to race and complete the World’s longest non-stop canoe race.

The Devizes to Westminster Canoe race is 125 miles along the Kennet & Avon canal and the Thames, and includes 77 locks to run around. The race starts late morning on Easter Saturday in Devizes, Wiltshire, after racing non-stop through the night.  The race is described as an extraordinary, solitary almost inner experience.  It is regarded that this event sits on the outer limits of human capability and it has been quoted to test the extreme limits of one’s physical and mental abilities.

For background both of us used to race kayaks in the 1980’s.  When we got in the two-man kayak (known as a K2) last summer it was the first time in 18 years (yes, we are both over 40).  In October 2008 we started the 6 month preparation and training for what is clearly becoming the toughest challenge either of us have faced and, when we saw previous winners included the Royal Marines, the Paras and the SAS, the enormity of the challenge became very apparent.

Five/six weekly training sessions have been squeezed into a busy work/home schedule and involve early morning and night river training, supplemented by running, cross-trainer and weight-training.  Furthermore, there are eight preparatory races ranging from 12 to 35 miles that we will be participating in.  If you want to keep track of our training go to http://karlmarsport.wordpress.com/ (if this doesn't work let me know).

There have been times when we have both asked ourselves "can we complete the race"?  The honest answer right now is that we are not sure, but are doing everything possible as preparation in order to complete the race.

If we can raise our target sum for Harry's chosen charity, The MND Association, of £12,500 (£100 per mile), this will provide us with an enormous incentive to finish, particularly during the night stages of the race.

Ahead we have three further months of suffering and discomfort, but after Easter for us it stops, for those like Harry it carries on.

Please help us to help the research into Motor Nurone Disease.

Stephen Scutcher & Karl Wills