Swindon man takes on Ultra Challenge for charity

A dad of two took on a 100k ultra run along the Wye Valley earlier this month to raise money for charity.

John Bailey, from Swindon, joined thousands of other adventurers over the weekend of 11 and 12 August as they walked, ran or jogged along the Wye Valley. The Wye Valley Challenge started out in Chepstow and finished 100km later in Hereford. John raised £1,500 towards the charity’s work.

John was inspired to raise money for Harrison’s Fund after meeting its founder Alex Smith, at last year’s Surrey Half Marathon, which he took part in for the charity.

Harrison’s Fund is named after 12 year old son Harrison Smith who suffers from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The charity was set up in 2012 to raise money into research for treatments and a cure for the thousands of boys like Harrison. Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy is a rare genetic condition that affects all the muscles in the body, causing them to waste away.  Harrison’s Fund’s goal is to get as much money as possible into the hands of the world’s best researchers, who are working to find a cure for Duchenne. The charity is currently funding 16 research projects in the US and the UK. 

John, 43, said: “As a dad of two myself, it’s a charity I can really sympathise with, so knowing I was raising money towards something so important was great motivation. I didn't know much about the charity until I watch a video of Alex and it moved me to try and help raise some money for them. 

“I trained hard for the day, taking in lots of long runs ahead of it and on the day, really enjoyed the event, and especially knowing I was running for such a good cause.”

Laura Morgan, Events Fundraiser at Harrison’s Fund added: “100k is such a great effort from John and he seems to have taken it all in his stride, so well done him. We are such a small charity and appreciate all the support we can get, so if anyone is looking to take on a physical challenge this year then please do get in touch as we’d love to hear from you.”