The Kili Climbers is a team of professionals from the Thames Valley aiming to raise money for two charities that are close to our hearts, Macmillan Cancer Support and Wooden Spoon. Please click 'read more' to view each climber's profile.
Derek Bradstock - RBS Matt Coburn - RBS IF
Steve Smith - RBS Tim Townley - BDO LLP
Rob Drake - Vodafone Chris Newman - Haslams
Rob Lindsay - Natwest Paula Kelly - RBS IF
Zara Seldon - RBS IF Michael Holmes - RBS IF
Mark Parsons -
We aim to raise over £100k through a variety of challenges and events throughout 2011, culminating in our ascent of Mt Kilimanjaro in Jan 2012.
Derek Bradstock
"The Stock"
The Stock's Story...
Having completed The 4 Peaks Challenge back in 2006 and again in 2010, I felt it was time for a new challenge and time to step up the ante…
Bring on Kilimanjaro - only "one peak", but a fairly impressive one at 5,895m that requires 7 days of trekking as opposed to a mere 48-hours!!
Hopefully, just a case of packing a few more painkillers and cans of Deep Heat spray (other similar products are freely available on the market - no sponsorship deal signed yet!), the odd glucose enriched snack bar and apparently ginger snacks/cakes to help combat the effects of altitude - I have also been told Viagra helps??!! But nervous to promote this as I'm due to spend 7 nights alone in a tent on a remote mountain side with a fellow male trekker…
My chosen charity is again The Wooden Spoon - a children's charity founded in 1983 that is dedicated to helping underprivileged children and young people all over the UK and Ireland to live happier, richer lives. I have been fortunate enough to be part of 2 fundraising "teams" who have so far raised well in excess of £50,000 for this worthy cause. This year we hope to add to that - setting a "team" target of £100,000 to be split between our adopted charities.
Please dig deep and support us - either with an online pledge, attending one of our fundraising events (Charity Balls, Golf Days, Sporting Competitions, Cycle Rides and Quiz Nights to be arranged), donating an auction or raffle prize, or all of the above!
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or require details of any of our planned events - 07771 505578 or derek.bradstock@rbs.co.uk
We set off for Tanzania on 12th January 2012 - a healthy Christmas and New Year for me this year then!
Thank you for your support... I thought I was mad last year - this time I know I am!
Cheers
The Stock
Matt Coburn
aka Cobes
Doing a trek of Mt Kilimanjaro has been an ambition of mine since an aborted attempt to get a team together at college and that ambition has only become stronger after the Comic Relief films of a couple of years ago.
The opportunity to climb the world’s highest free standing mountain and get a photo from the top is too much to let pass by.
I have always been interested in physical challenges, I have completed the 24 peak challenge 3 times and the 4 peaks last year and several half marathons and 10k races over the years and have helped to raise over £100k for charity along the way.
This challenge represents a huge leap forward in scale and physical endurance and is on behalf of two very worthy charities.
I've seen first hand the excellent work Wooden Spoon can do for the kids of Britain especially in the project they are doing in Tilehurst where I live.
Macmillan as well has helped members of my family and more recently a member of my cricket team who sadly is no longer with us they are unflinching and largely unsung heroes and deserve our support.
You can contact me any time if you have a question or would like to help us with our challenge at matt.coburn@rbsif.co.uk or on 07990842520.
The training is going to be tough and the fundraising difficult but I cannot wait to reach the top of the mountain. Your support is vital to our success, so please dig deep.
Thanks
Steve Smith
My nick name is Stevo ! Nice and simple!
I think someone must have put something in my drink as the last time I did something of this magnitude was 26 years ago when I ran the Marathon!!
However being one of it not the oldest of the group I have had many personal experiences linked to the charities we are supporting and in particular the Macmillan Nurses
From my Grand Mother on the one side of the family to my Grandfather on the other cancer has struck. From other family members to other family friends cancer has struck.
From close personal friends to close work colleagues cancer has struck.
Some are no longer with us and some have battled through to smile for another day.
The constant has been the fabulous work of the Macmillan Nurses. Bottom line is I thought it was about bloody time I did something to raise some money in their name.
This won't be easy for me - so please dig deep and support my fellow Kili Climbers and me as we aim to raise a massive £100k + and with your help we will do it !.
A huge thank you for your support!
Stevo
Tim Townley
Why? You must be mad! Are you having a midlife crisis? Are just a few of the questions/comments I've had from people when telling them that I'm taking on the Kili Challenge. Well the answers are simple: I was drunk. Probably. No, If I was she would be 18, blonde and sat in my two seater sports car.
The truth is I am one of those sad people that went to school, then straight to Uni, graduated and got a job with BDO LLP and never took a GAP Year, and have now been with BDO for over 15 years. So doing something 'different', worthwhile and having a feeling of achievement is something I have talked about for some time, but leaving behind a wife and two young kids for 2 weeks was not an easy decision. That was until I was approached to take on the Kili Challenge for two fantastic charities, hearing about the great work MacMillan do, knowing a number of people who have been touched by the Big C, and listening to how the Wooden Spoon Charity helps disabled and disadvantaged kids through sport, was something I could not ignore.
So if you would like to help a 37 year old fat, balding bloke take on this huge challenge and raise money for two superb causes, then please dig as deep as possible and pledge what you can, and help the Kili Climbers raise our ambitious target of £100k.
A massive thank you for your support.
Tim
Rob Drake
I’ve always liked a bit of a challenge and Kilimanjaro is one of those things you talk about and never quite get round to………. well thanks to Matt & Derek I’ve got no excuse now.
I’ve been into cycling, hiking and mountaineering for many years and more recently I got into running and have completed several half marathons, so a really physically gruelling challenge is right up my street and Kili is way out at the top of my to do list.
We have got a couple of really fantastic charities to support for this event and a huge target, so we need your help!
Raising as much as we can for Macmillan and Wooden Spoon makes the whole event really worth while and I think you’d be hard pressed to find someone that can’t relate to the work these charities do.
So we’ve got a huge challenge ahead of us to raise as much money as we can for the charities, get as fit as possible and climb an almighty mountain with a summit success rate of only 50%!!!!!! (I won’t mention the mortality rate!!!). Dig deep help us out and wish us luck on the climb.
Thanks for your support,
Rob
Chris Newman
I jumped at the opportunity to climb Mount Kilimanjaro as soon as it was offered. The main reason for this was so that I could finally look forward to getting a rest and some sleep, both of which I have been deprived of since the arrival of my now 6 month old son.
I am also looking forward to the physical challenge of the climb itself. Having said that, if Sea World resident Chris Moyle’s can do it, anyone can. Can’t they?
The two charities to benefit from our fundraising efforts, Wooden Spoon and Macmillan are particularly important to me. Wooden Spoon’s work helps the lives of disadvantaged children in Britain whilst Macmillan nurses made the life of my mum a lot more bearable in her last few weeks before we lost her to cancer around 16 years ago.
Please donate generously to these two very worthy courses.
Many thanks
Chris
Rob Lindsay
5'8", Male, Athletic build (...ish), GSOH, WLTM large Mountain for challenging, emotional & charitably rewarding times. Timewasters need not apply (i.e. if you’re shorter than 19,000 ft)
This challenge was dangled in front of me at a time when I was not psychologically prepared to answer appropriately - so I'm part of the crew.
I always have a desire to do something for charity once a year and to date I've conquered a few things in doing so - 3peaks challenge, Great North Bike Ride, London to Brighton ride, Basingstoke Big Wheel and a couple of marathons. This one will blow all of those out of the water in terms of physical and emotional endurance, and all importantly financial gain to two incredibly worth while causes. Please dig as deep as you can!
Paula Kelly
I’m always up for new challenges, and since moving to England I’ve tried to set myself little goals each year. I have completed my first half marathon, bikeathon, the Great Highland Hike, to name a few; therefore Kili seemed like the next logical step? The more plausible reasoning was that back in April I think I had too many kit-kats during my mid morning break and the sugar rush sent me a little crazy as I decided to email Matt to apply for a place on the Kili team. A few days later I was suddenly climbing a very big mountain and had no idea what I had let myself in for. My only real experience of ‘proper’ hiking was nearly 10 years ago when I completed my Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award, and being one of only two girls on the 10 strong Kili team I have a bigger challenge on my hands than simply climbing the 5,895m!
I did have one big reason for applying for a place in the team, and that was that one of the chosen charities was Macmillan Cancer Support. Like many I have had relatives that have been touched with this awful illness and I have a few angels looking down from above that will be guiding me through every step of the way and will be my inspiration. I think this charity gives so much to society and with cancer being the no.1 killer each year in the UK very few of us will ever go through our lives without knowing someone who has been affected in some shape or form. The Wooden Spoon, a charity that helps underprivileged children in the UK & Ireland is another excellent worthy cause, and it is great to hear first hand what an impact our contributions will make to these children’s’ lives.
We aren’t just undertaking the biggest physical and emotional endurance test of our lives; we have an even bigger mountain to climb at home in raising the £100k. We cannot do this without your help, and ever penny, no matter how big or small will help make such a difference to these two wonderful charities.
A huge thank you in advance to you all for your support and we will do our best to make you all proud!
Paula
Zara Seldon
When it comes to adventure I would have to say I am a bit of a novice, however in July last I completed the 4 peaks challenge which sparked my interest in pushing myself both physically and mentally and in doing so raising money for some very worthwhile causes. So when I heard that some of last years 4 peakers were taking up the challenge to climb Kilimanjaro with the aim of raising £100k for 2 exceptional charities, Macmillan and Wooden Spoon I just had to get involved.
Cancer is a terrible disease, which has unfortunately touched both friends and family over the years some of whom have made it into remission others are no longer with us, nevertheless the effect on the both the suffers and the people around them has been devastating this is why the support of charities such as Macmillan is so important. I was introduced to the work of the Wooden Spoon last year and found that they do a fantastic job of supporting disadvantaged and disabled children in the UK achieve their full potential.
This is a 7 day gruelling trek which is going to push us all to the limit, so please dip deep and support us in this fantastic cause
Thank you for your support
Zara
Michael Holmes
Hello,
So to the question of why would I sign myself up for such a challenge?
Well for me this was an easy decision to make, in 2008 my grandad passed away after a long battle against cancer.
He lived in the Isle of Wight and from the beginning of his battle against cancer, Macmillan were there for him ensuring that he received the best possible care he could get. In his last few weeks they put him into a hospice ran by Macmillan nurses who worked tirelessly to ensure that he was comfortable. The nurses there are welcoming and supportive and since then I've always wanted to find a way to repay them for their tireless and often undervalued work that they undertake day in and day out for the individuals in their care and their families!
When I saw the opportunity of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro I instantly knew that I had to do it and that this would be my way of saying thank you.
Fortunately enough I was one of the lucky two to be chosen along with my friend Paula who is taking part in this climb for similar reasons. Please help us meet and exceed the target of £100k that we have set ourselves so that we can say thank you to those that help others less fortunate than ourselves!
Michael
Mark Parsons
aka Biggy P
Vital statistics 5ft 5inches tall, 17stone 9lbs (of relaxed muscle) to say that I am slightly out of my comfort zone would be the understatement of the year.
After around 9 pints of the black stuff whilst in the plush surroundings of a hospitality suite at Twickenham watching England beat France ‘The Stock’ made the suggestion that I should join him in doing something for charity and he told me that he had plans to climb Kilimanjaro which at the time seemed like the easiest thing in the world and ‘if Chris Moyles can do it then so can I’
Having agreed to take on the challenge the reality of what lies ahead for our team is really starting to sink in but the potential of raising a large sum of money for 2 great charities makes the blood, sweat and tears all worth while.
We all appreciate that times are tough and money is tight however if you could please dig deep and support us in achieving our target of £100k for Macmillian and Wooden spoon and send us on our way to climb the highest freestanding mountain in the world for these wonderful causes it would be truly appreciated.
Thanks
Mark
