I wanted to lose some weight and start running but needed a big challenge and big motivation, and this 50 mile run and two person relay including going up Snowdon provided the challenge, but Happy Child gave me the motivation to keep training when legs were tired, and the weather was poor. With my friend Lewis Williams, we agreed to take this on doing 25 miles each with a total ascent of over 9000 ft. So at 6 am June 30th I set off from on the beach after nine months training and three stone lighter.
However one of the problems was this was one of the hottest days of the year, and even in Wales the temperature was about 30 degrees, and we had to carry all our food and water for the day with only a few refill stations along the way! The scenery was stunning, and the thought that I was raising money for Happy Child was very motivating to keep going. I struggled with cramp along the way
Having completed 16 miles, I began to climb Snowdon at one point on my hands and knees because it was so steep! The clear views at the top were amazing and knew I had nearly finished after the last few downhill miles. However, the tiredness and cramp became very difficult, but Happy Child and being part of the team kept me going. It took me 5 ½ hours to complete first 25 miles half over an hour longer than planned without the heat! I handed the baton over to Lewis, who had an even hotter 25 miles. We finished 3rd in our relay category with the added satisfaction that we were both over 50 and nearly twice the age of everyone else running!
The most beautiful moment of the day was receiving a texted photo of three Happy Child mothers in Brazil with a good luck poster they had made. Now I was no longer raising money for Happy Child, but real people with real lives and our money could make a real difference!
I was so pleased to have done this and loved doing this with Happy Child. Lots of people who I had never met sponsored me because of their support of Happy Child.