20 May Bravo to our tremendous team of trekkers

Staff and Volunteers from both Kitson Boyce & Torbay Communities met at the halfway point – People’s Parkfield

BRAVO! The walkers trekking 200 kilometres in just five days to mark law firm Kitson Boyce’s bicentennial.

Forty kilometres is no mean feat and is impressive even for one day, but as the week wears on, it becomes ever harder to attain. The early start at 7am takes its toll on the body, adding to aches and strains in the calves, feet, lungs, and back.

As if that was not enough, choose to walk the ups, downs, and uneven terrain of the Southwest Coast Path as it wends its way through South Devon from Exeter to Mountbatten breakwater, and you have a heady mix worthy of a charity fundraiser.

Not surprisingly, the JustGiving page associated with the challenge has gathered pledges running into thousands of pounds, all of which will be coming to us at Torbay Communities to support our work across the Bay.

Coming up with a charity fundraiser that attracts attention (and therefore much-needed funds) is an art form in itself – too hard and no one will do it, too easy and people might not fund it.

Alternatively, of course, you can find just the right mix of challenge and fun, ensuring you will have the participants who will have a great time and won’t mind trying that little bit harder to persuade friends and relatives to either get involved or to part with their hard-earned cash.

For my own part, I have done so many different things from charity, like power boat racing, that nearly ended in disaster when we nearly ploughed a boat containing the marshals, during a hailstorm.  Then there was the agony of doing the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu (I deserved every penny of that one).

I have also slept out (actually stayed awake during the night in the freezing cold) for various homeless charities, including Night Stop, which provides safe and secure accommodation for young people aged 18 – 25 associated with South Devon YMCA.

I therefore thought doing a stretch from Babbacombe to Berry Head with the walkers from Kitson Boyce would be a doddle – simply an extended dog walk.  How wrong can you be? Screaming calves, sore feet. But an overall feeling of self-satisfaction for a job well done.

So, spare a thought today (Wednesday) as the walkers from Kitson Boyce complete their arduous challenge. I will be there to cheer them over the finishing line at Mountbatten Breakwater. Well done all. No mean feat.

If you’d like to donate, please visit the JustGiving page.