Texel Sheep Society director Graham Hill of the Rolle flock, Clinton Devon Estates, Sidmouth, Devon, is undertaking four punishing runs this autumn to raise money for the Youth Cancer Trust and tie in with the Society’s own four national shows & sales.
Mr Hill will run the Dambusters hald marathon in Northern Ireland on 22 August, followed by the 8.7 mile Ben Nevis Fell Run on 5 September and then takes on the 17 mile Exmoor Stagger on 18 October before tacking the Snowdonia Marathon on 24 October.
Running a total of 65 miles across the four events Mr Hill will face 45 miles of mountain running within that total and for the Ben Nevis Fell Run faces a two hour deadline to reach the 4419ft summit of Scotland’s highest peak before coming down the mountain again.
Mr Hill’s challenge is in support of the Texel Sheep Society’s year-long fundraising efforts for the Youth Cancer Trust with various competitions taking place at this summer’s NSA Sheep Events in Wales, the North of England, the South West of England and Northern Ireland.
Explaining his motivation to take on the challenge Mr Hill said having been a runner in his younger days and having previously organised 10k runs and run a marathon he wanted to get back in to running again. “As directors of the Society we were challenged to come up with ways to raise money for the Youth Cancer Trust and an important part of our own Youth Development Programme’s fund raising. I felt running was the best way for me to do something a little different and raise money.
“With all four of these runs it is not about completing them in the best time possible, but about the challenge of completing them. They all cover challenging terrain and I’m training when time allows to try and ensure I’m in the best shape possible when it comes to the runs later this year.”
Mr Hill says training among the Devon countryside may not appear to be the same as running up Ben Nevis or Snowdonia, but having previously completed the Four Trig run which includes a total climb of up to 3500ft he has an understanding of the challenge ahead.
Texel Sheep Society chairman Henry Gamble urged all Society members and the wider farming community to support Mr Hill in his fundraising efforts in whatever way they could. “I can’t praise Graham enough for taking on this challenge, these are long distance runs in tough conditions and certainly not something many of us would want to consider!
“Cancer is a disease which touches the lives of us all in some way, both young and old, but is particularly hard to see young people with their lives in front of them struck down with this horrible disease. Donating even just a small amount in support of Graham will help make a difference to the lives of young people battling against cancer and that is something everyone can appreciate in some way,” he said.
Donations can be made by visting the Texel Society’s Just Giving page at www.justgiving.com/texelsheepsociety