Jackie Bradbury writes “Some of the Private Clients team, all non-walkers (and in some cases some who did no exercise at all!) decided to do the Chiltern 50km ultra challenge event at the end of September for the Alzheimer's Society.
We all found it really difficult to fit in training with work and family commitments. Just trying to get up to an 18 mile distance took 6 hrs out of precious weekends and family time.
As most of us have been walking since about 12 months old, so walking 50km (31 miles) would just be a walk in the park! However, it was tougher than we expected.
During the 13 hrs to complete the event we ascended 839m (over 350m of which in just 3 hours including one hill named Death Hill apparently) and over very difficult terrain. We became sick of the sight of flint stones!
The downhill was as difficult for the 4 walkers with knee injuries as were the uphill sections. The last few hours in the dark were great fun through woods, down ravines (where it was so steep we had to sidestep) and through fields full of cows - not sure who was more nervous! We had to wear head torches and glo sticks (like a weird rave but with less dancing, although a fellow walker did have a speaker and was doing requests - we asked for the Rocky theme tune when we got to a particularly difficult section).
Disappointingly due to a diary clash Charlie Hannington couldn't make the Chiltern 50, so earlier in the month he punished himself by doing the 100km Thames Challenge over two days on his own and finished 13th in the male category and 26th overall, despite a bad knee injury. A fantastic achievement! We all kept him going with messages from our team What's App group.
Our challenges and the raffle we ran not only raised over £6,000 for The Alzheimer's Society, but was a great team building event.
Thank you to all of you who supported the team!