Elaine's 2,000 km Challenge
What’s Going On?
Let me say this right upfront: I am not a keep fit fanatic. In fact I have never been remotely interested in fitness of any kind, at any level.
Sadly, this shows! In addition to that general lack of interest, add a desk job and computer bound hobbies and you have a recipe for years of blissful inactivity.
However, all that is about to change!
The Plan
After not having ventured near a bike since I was 17 (and I’m prepared to admit that was a while back now) my plan is to cycle 2,000 km over a period of 50 days starting on 21 January. 2,000 km is 1,250 miles or the equivalent of 48 marathons! At 40 km (25 miles) each and every day I’m due to finish on the weekend of 12 March.
As I’ve acknowledged, I’m built more for comfort than speed but I have a great cause in mind (see below) and there’s no excitement in doing anything that would be too easy is there now!
km
days
miles
marathons
The Training
So the training began a few weeks back and the agony has not stopped since.
I started with a gentle 1km, which took me so long I was in serious danger of developing premature saddle sores!
In fact there were more perils to be faced in my training than just saddle sores. Somehow within days of starting I managed to mangle my calf, resulting in days of bleeding as I persevered with training despite the injury.
Another injury was removing a layer of skin on my ankle. Needless to say this happened just as I was getting over the calf injury.
So the while the training has gone well it's not been without incident and I can only imagine what excitement the real deal will bring.
I know I'm tempting fate by saying this but right now I am injury free (touching wood as I type that) and raring to go.
The Cause
You didn't think this was solely for the good of my health did you? Most definitely NOT!
Our beautiful local church is in desperate need of roof repairs. All Saints' church in Ashton-on-Mersey celebrated its Golden Jubilee last year and is home to a fantastic community. We have had a quote for the repairs of £95,000. We've been fundraising for a number of months and are on our way with almost £25,000 raised.
It's now time for me to step up and to coincide with the rash pledges to fitness we all tend to make in January I’ve committed to this rather daunting biking challenge to help out.
Follow Along …
… from the comfort of your armchair! I’ll be sure to keep you all updated on progress with all the gory details from behind the scenes of my mad adventure!
Look out for the hashtag #ASRF4050 – the shortest hashtag for All Saints Roof Fund 40 km for 50 days I could find!
Thanks for reading … watch out for updates soon!
How Can You Help?
I’m glad you asked!
Seriously, any cheerleading you can provide would be most welcome as would sponsorship/donations.
You can donate via my JustGiving page or directly via PayPal.
If you’re in the area one Sunday, pop in to the Parish Centre after 9:30am Mass and say hello 🙂
