02 October 2020
After a difficult year, it is truly heart-warming to reflect on September with the success of Round Britain Your Way and the always enthusiastic, passionate, and devoted Trust community.
There was no way of knowing what kind of appetite there would be for a month-long challenge. Who could be blamed for hunkering down and riding out the storm that is COVID-19? But that just isn’t the Trust way, it seems!
It was simple: get round Britain. Apart, but together. That meant racking up 2,400 miles through individual efforts, all the while drumming up support and donations.
As of writing, Round Britain Your Way has raised over £18,000 (including Gift Aid) to support young people in recovery from cancer – and has traversed almost 6,000 miles. That’s because you dug out your running shoes, strapped on your cycling helmets, took to lakes and lochs for a swim, and put one foot in front of the other, again and again, for a whole month. Thank you!
Even with lots of participants, covering 2,400 miles was a big ask. It is literally the distance to go around Britain. So, when you all crossed the 2,000-mile mark and it was barely the second week of October…
We had been Round Britain twice, hadn’t we?! Buoyed by everyone’s enthusiasm, it was time to get serious and set a goal that might actually make one or two of you sweat. Now doubled, 4,800 miles sounded like much more of a challenge. Spurred on by this new target, more people joined as the month progressed, like Chloe with her one-day sunrise-to-sunset challenge.
While our efforts were safe and physically distanced, we were together in spirit. Who wasn’t cheering Elita on each and every time she updated her fundraising page? Or when Colin smashed his 150 mile target in nine days so upped his challenge to the distance between Edinburgh and our base on the Isle of Wight?
Time and again, it was amazing to see everyone pushing themselves to raise money for young people in recovery. Shoutout to Nisha for covering over 200 miles only on weekends, to Tom for his 4-4-48 challenge (four miles, every four hours, for 48 hours!), to Emily who walked, climbed, water skied, swam, kayaked, backpacked…
And we know Kate’s dog Maggie probably isn’t reading this, but if you are Maggie, a massive woof-woof to you!
The Round Britain Your Way website is still live. For the past month, all those involved have been sharing updates, posting photos of their progress, and telling tales of their time with the Trust. It is genuinely amazing, and if you are inspired by what you see, donations are still open.
All that’s left to say is thank you. To those who took part, to those who supported them, to those who spread the word. It has been a much-needed beam of light in a troublesome year. You will make a significant difference. Now let’s have a sit down.