Witney Three Peaks Challenge 2010
1 Team, 3 mountains, 1 great cause... all in 24 hours
Thank you for visiting our fundraising page!
We will be tackling the Three Peaks Challenge on 15-16th July 2010. Chris, Juri, Ashley, Symon and David have joined me in signing up to conquer Britain's three highest peaks - Ben Nevis in Scotland, Scafell Pike in England and Snowdon in Wales - all in the space of 24 hours (driving included) and I have apparently been barking orders in a style to make an army general proud. The whole team have been making a huge effort to prepare themselves for what can only be an incredibly tough but unbelievably exhilarating experience, training tirelessly, and most of us rarely see daylight these days as we are permanent fixtures in the gym. We have set up a number of practice walks over the coming months and we expect to soon possess lung capacities to rival that of Mariah Carey. Those of you who know us personally will be aware that the most energy we usually exert generally involves heading for the bar at last orders, however we are gradually weaning ourselves off the beer and the smokers in the group are off the nicotine, at least when I'm not looking. A big thank you goes to all the guys who are participating, they are all working so hard already, and a special mention goes to my girlfriend, Amy, and her dad, Trevor, for volunteering to do all the driving - they are as much a part of the team as the walkers and our efforts would come to nothing without them!
We have chosen to fundraise for FeetFirstWorldwide, a charity which aims to create a worldwide programme for the recognition and management of club foot (for more information please see www.feetfirstworldwide.com). Club foot, or Congenital talipes equino-varus, is the most common significant musculoskeletal congenital abnormality. It is present in 1 in 1000 births in the UK and between 2 & 3 births in Africa. In Malawi, there are 5000 children with untreated clubfeet and 500 more are born each year. Amy's niece was born with the condition in 2008 and, having seen the results of what low-cost, relatively simple corrective procedures can produce, there is no reason why anyone should have to experience such unneccesary suffering.
The challenge we are undertaking seemed fitting for this cause and, on behalf of the rest of the team, may I take this opportunity to thank everyone who makes a donation to support our efforts for this pioneering work. We will update our page as often as we can with photos and training information, so please look out for updates on how your donations are helping FeetFirstWorldwide. Even the smallest amount has the potential to make a considerable difference to the lives of thousands of people, so please give what you can.
Adam Bates
