On July 4th 2015, I and three friends will be attempting the "Great Glen Triatlon". The Great Glen is a sequence of lochs and rivers that cuts diagonally across Scotland from Inverness and through the Highlands to Fort William. Our mission (which has been accepted) will be to cycle the length of the Great Glen on hill trails from east to west, climb Ben Nevis, and then return to Inverness by kayak. It's a 150 mile round trip and the goal is to complete the entire challenge within 5 days. To give you some idea of the personal level of difficulty, the last kayaking I did was in the school swimming pool.

The why is fairly simple. In December 2012 my friends James and Alice had an amazing baby boy, Arthur Byron. However, it soon became apparent that Arthur was seriously ill, suffering from severe and intense brain seizures. These seizures could last for many hours. 

It is difficult for me to begin to describe what Arthur, Alice and James had to endure . Life for the three of them was a constant cycle of doctors, tests, seizures and hospital wards. However, despite this horrendous situation, James and Alice took on every problem as it came, dealing with everything that was thrown at them. And Arthur. He was a little man with immense courage. He was warm, loving and giving in face of adversity I cannot even imagine. This amazing boy wasn't given much of a chance and yet, day after day, he continued to fight on. 

Tragically, after a seven-month struggle, Arthur died at home with Alice and James. Arthur's legacy though is not one of tragedy but of love and inspiration. How he, James and Alice dealt with his illness showed a strength of will by all three that few have or can maintain. It was awe inspiring in the truest sense of those words.

I had been speaking to James on and off over the years about doing something stupid for charity. As you can imagine, I jumped at the chance to support James and Epilepsy Research by doing the "Great Glen Triathlon" in Arthur's memory. Little is known about epilepsy so the research the charity sponsers into the causes, treatments and prevention of epilepsy is absolutely vital.

Please help me to raise money for Epilepsy Research UK in the hope that their invaluable work will one day prevent others from suffering as Arthur, Alice and James did.

Thank you!

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