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Back in April, I
decided I wanted to take part in a physical challenge for charity.
Having never raised money for charity and being quite unfit from 10
years of working in IT, I thought it was about time I got myself
fit, experienced something different and did something useful for
charity. I decided I would cut out all alcohol for 4 months, cut
right down on junk food and commit myself to a strict fitness regime
during all available spare time. The only decision left to make was
what physical challenge I would undertake and for which charity? Deciding on the charity was simple; the British Red Cross is close to my heart. Being born in Rhodesia (now known as Zimbabwe) and spending the first 8 years of my life there before my parents moved back to the UK, I have seen and heard accounts of the plight of the people less fortunate than I – those who could not escape the abject poverty, destitution and violence. Also, my late grandmother volunteered for the BRC for a number of years and every summer holiday I would stay with her in Devon and often heard about her work with them. So I visited the British Red Cross website to see what upcoming challenges were available. I came across the ‘Beat the Brecons’ event to be held in Wales during August and as soon as I read the description of the event, I knew I’d found my challenge! What made this challenge unique was the fact that it was 3 diverse events over 3 days, as opposed to one single event. I felt then that if I could cope with a 20 mile hike, followed by 20 miles of canoeing and finally 20 miles of mountain biking – all in the rugged Brecon Beacons – I could cope with anything as it would likely be a real test of stamina, endurance and commitment. One week before and disaster strikes! |
DAC’S JON WINTERBURN ‘BEATS THE
BRECONS’
In the British Red Cross adrenaline challenge… |
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Needing suitable kit for each of
the 3 very different events was in itself a challenge! I started a
blog online to record my progress both through the training and the
event itself; this provided my sponsors – including Call Sign
- with updates on my progress and helped to keep me focussed. Unfortunately, one week before the event and during my final training session - a 20 mile bike ride in Hadleigh Country Park - I crashed my mountain bike and fractured a rib. I rested for the rest of the week and relied on Paracetamol, Red Bull and good old adrenaline to keep me going through the event itself. The Red Cross event organisers were really supportive and ensured I was up to the events, because there was no way I was going to drop out after all the training and fund-raising! The event itself was the single most physically challenging experience I have ever been through. The hiking was hard work and our progress was hampered by relentless rain and gale-force winds. The canoeing was almost a pleasant change! I quickly learnt to read the water because events change so rapidly when you’re on quite fast-moving water, but how I never capsized I will never know! The mountain biking was extreme – I thought I’d mountain-biked before, but I quickly realised that this was in a completely different league altogether! The terrain was always changing and often treacherous. The majority of the bike ride was |
uphill into the mountains and it
was the most exhausting of all the events. Due to this, I felt it
was also the most rewarding of the 3 events. All in all, it was very enjoyable and I really felt alive! Certainly, I’ve achieved a lot by taking part in it, but I could not have done this without the fantastic support of my wife and son, family, friends and colleagues. So I would like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who supported and sponsored me; I’m touched by the generosity of so many people. My target was £500 and to date I have raised £620. I still have to collect some of the money and I’m hoping to gain a few more donations, so fingers crossed! Equally I’d like to thank the British Red Cross for not only providing me with such an excellent experience, but for the first-class support we received during every step of the event. I certainly feel it was worthwhile and will continue to support the BRC in the future; their work is so important – not just far away from home in Africa, but in your local neighbourhood too. You never know when you will need them, so please support the British Red Cross. Thank you all. Should you wish to read more, my blog of this event is available at http://jonwinterburn.word-press.com. Jonathen Winterburn |
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