Hi there, my name is Mickey and first of all I would like to thank you very much for taking the time to visit my fundraising page; which is dedicated to my father, Norman Hill, who sadly lost his fight against cancer on 29th March 2017.

His story, like that of many others, tells of the terrible effect that cancer can have on its victims and their families. He was diagnosed in 2015 with the skin cancer, malignant Melanoma on his knee. Despite being told this news he remained upbeat and had the area of concern removed during two separate operations at the end of 2015. He was told the margins were clear; however, in 2016 further bad news came when a routine check showed that the lymph nodes at the top of his leg were enlarged. This meant he was back under the knife in May 2016 to have them removed and again he was told post operation that the margins were clear. The next few months passed without further incident until very unexpectedly in October 2016, Dad was taken to hospital with a suspected and later confirmed bleed on the brain. Previous routine checks had not shown any cancerous concerns in the brain so it came as a huge shock when an MRI a few days later showed evidence of an underlying tumour. As you can imagine Dad was absolutely devastated by this diagnosis and it sent shock waves through our family. It was here that the fear and anguish began for us all and it was to remain for the next five months as we all fought hard to get Dad treatment. He showed extreme bravery in the face of such awful torment remaining dignified and grateful beyond belief. In December 2016 a course of immunotherapy, which was intended to offer disease control instead resulted in life threatening side effects and more time spent in hospital. As it became clearer to him and us that very little exists in the way of successful treatment for Melanoma (particularly once it is in the brain) times got even harder and Dad faced many weeks of uncertainty where he was receiving no treatment at all knowing that the clock was ticking. The weeks got tougher and tougher as more and more symptoms began to appear and after a hard fought battle Dad lost his fight in March 2017.

I struggle to put into words how difficult the period between October 2016 and March 2017 was and how difficult life continues to be without my Dad. As I said previously, he was brave beyond what I could imagine possible for someone living with such an aggressive cancer and to say I am proud of him is a massive understatement. I now want to be able to do something special that he would be proud of and to raise much needed funds for Cross Roads Care, whose wonderful staff offered invaluable help and support to my father and my family during his illness.

So what am I going to do to earn your donation? Well I want to do something big. Something that will take me to my absolute limit and then push me a whole lot further! Something that my Dad would be proud of! I have decided, therefore, to take on The Wall...a 69 mile leg crumbling ultra marathon along Hadrian's Wall!

http://ratrace.com/thewall/

As my Dad was 63 years old when he lost his battle, I figure this represents 1.10 miles on foot for every year of his life and what is more in the 12 months between now and when I take on The Wall I aim to complete as many other other events as I can and clock up at least 1500 miles on foot in the process!

I am seriously unfit at the moment so this represents a pretty huge and daunting challenge. I will start my training now and have a couple of events already in the diary...a rather modest 8 mile organised walk in Sevenoaks on 17th June and the rather more gruelling Three Peaks Challenge on 8th July. The subsequent months will be filled with a series of half marathons, marathons, obstacle course races and any other crazy events I come across. Please feel free to make event suggestions if you think they fit the bill. As I finalise my full itinerary I will update this site accordingly

17th Jun 2017 - 8 Mile Moonlight Walk - DONE :O)

8th Jul 2017 - Three Peaks Challenge - DONE :O)

19th Aug 2017 - 20km Brutal Off Road Run - DONE :O)

23rd/24th Sept 2017 - Equinox 24 Hour Team Relay - DONE :O)

1st Oct 2017 - Tonbridge Half Marathon - DONE :O)

4th Nov 2017 - Thames Meander Marathon - DONE :O)

2nd Dec 2017 - 16 Mile GRIM Challenge - DONE :O)

13th Jan 2018 - Winter Fan Dance 24km - DONE :O)

25th Feb 2018 - Thorpe Park Half Marathon - DONE :O)

18th Mar 2018 - Marseille Marathon - DONE :O)

21st Apr 2018 - The Fox 37 Mile Ultra Marathon DONE :O)

16th June 2018 - The Wall 69 Mile Ultra Marathon DONE :O)

So that's enough waffling from me. Hopefully you think this is a worthy cause and a tough enough challenge...if so please donate on one of my charity pages below. Many thanks, Mickey.

Your donation can really help me smash this goal Please remember: Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never share them with anyone or send you unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. They'll make sure Gift Aid (an additional 25%) is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer, too. That means more money goes to the charity, faster, with JustGiving.