Hi folks,

Next year I am planning to compete in Ironman Lanzarote on May 19th. For those of you who don't know what an 'Ironman' is, it is a long-distance triathlon comprising of a 2.4mile swim, a 112 mile bike ride and a full marathon of 26.2 mile run...without a break...all within 17 hours. To put it in perspective, it's the equivalent of swimming 2.4 miles, cycling from Edinburgh to Newcastle then running to Hexham all within the heat and humidity of the Lanzarote sun – making it the toughest Ironman in the world where ‘normal limits don’t apply’.

As well as attempting to fulfill my dream of qualifying for the ‘Ironman World Championships in Hawaii’ I am doing all this for a REAL reason. I am hoping to raise £1406 for 'Breast Cancer Care' (£10 for every 140.6 mile covered), which is a charity that helps provide enormous practical and emotional support to anyone affected by breast cancer.

This is a charity very close to my heart as my mum was diagnosed with the awful disease in 2008 as part of a scheduled screening. To put it in perspective, if the screening was a month later I would’ve lost my best friend. With immense willpower and a fantastic support infrastructure, she made a full recovery. To summarise the experience of living with someone with cancer and as a trainee teacher I would like to offer a quote from cancer survivor Lance Armstrong:

“If children have the ability to ignore all odds and percentages, then maybe we can all learn from them. When you think about it, what other choice is there but to hope? We have two options, medically and emotionally: give up, or fight like hell”

No amount of money is too small as it all adds up. But you can also just help by sharing the link and letting people know what I am trying to achieve to help others who are trying to ‘fight like hell’.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Lloyd x