Hi, my name is Paul and I need your help to raise monies for St Rocco's Hospice in my hometown of Warrington in memory of my Mum.  I am just an ordinary person, but I want to do something extraordinary for an exceptional person.

My story begins as one part of the story sadly came to an end as my Mum sadly passed away on March 19, 2017, when she lost her 3 year battle to peritoneal cancer.  Dad, Mark, Morgan, (little) Sydney and myself were all at her side.  Just the way she wanted it to be.  Mum was always my greatest supporter albeit, she would often question my reasoning behind the many things I have done.  Nevertheless, she would always support and encourage me.  Mums are Mums, after all, aren't they!

This is where my part of the story begins.

St Rocco's is a charity that was very close to my Mum's heart and reflected her own desire to help people and their families through difficult times of their lives.  Mum was involved with St Rocco's many years ago as she was one of the first volunteers at their first Hospice and, as fate would have it, spent time in there during the final months of her fabulous life.  So it is for these two reasons I want to raise monies in support of St Rocco's.

What is the challenge? In August 2018 we will be attempting to break a record by running, swimming, and cycling from Marble Arch (London) to the Arc de Triomphe (Paris) as part of a three-man team. The current record for a three-person team stands at 51hrs 15mins. Our team name is '140 years to Tri' we are all triathletes and the 140 represents the total of our combined ages.

This is an ultra-distance triathlon known as the 'Enduronman Arch to Arc' or 'A2A.  It starts with an 87 mile (140km) run from London's Marble Arch to Dover on the Kent coast, then a cross-Channel swim (shortest distance 21 miles/33.8km) to the French coast, and finishes with a 180 mile (289.7km) cycle from Calais to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.  We are planning to attempt it in 1-hour stints.

Many would say that the A2A is the 'Ultimate' triathlon challenge for a triathlete.

Over the years I have completed many endurance events and triathlons including Ironman distance in single, double and triple events all of which have given me a good insight into this type of event and the dedication and determination it takes to train and complete.  It is, however, without question going to be a big challenge for me. 

On the morning of Mum's last day, I told her that I loved her and that she had been a great Mum and a wonderful Nana.  Mum simply replied 'I know'. So can you help me to be a great Son and a wonderful Dad by sponsoring me in my Arch to Arc attempt and helping me to raise £5,000 of the £15,000 we want to raise as a team for St Rocco's in memory of Pamela Le Riche.

We are funding the Arch to Arc attempt ourselves so all monies raised will go directly to St Rocco's.

Thank you for reading my story and I hope you feel you can donate to St Rocco's - no matter how small or large the donation, it will be very much appreciated.

See you all on the other side,

Paul

Mum, I know you’ll be with me when the west wind moves…