The Challenge is over!

Well I have returned safe and sound...what an experience! I met some fantastic people, who I sincerely hope to stay in touch with. The scenery was awesome, like nothing I've ever seen (I am only 24!) and I thoroughly enjoyed India - the culture, the people, the crazy manoeuvres they call driving! I found myself being constantly amazed, impressed, bemused, shocked, inspired by things I saw or heard. In fact, something that stuck in my mind was a conversation I had with one of the girls at the Save the Children project in Kolcata - I told her that I really liked the culture in India and she was really suprised (I think she thought I was humouring her!), she said "why? it is so simple!" and I said that was why it was so good, it's uncomplicated and true. She really couldn't believe that I would prefer that way of life to the one back home!

Anyway, I will talk more about my experiences over the next couple of weeks. I wrote a journal whilst I was away and will share that with you on here...although I filled 2 books so it could take a while and I think I will have to cut it down considerably!

So...

Here is the schedule of what we did:

Friday 5th October

I arrive! Sightseeing tour of Delhi.

Saturday 6th October

9am - meet and go to India Gate for a group photo.

9.45 - Trek briefing with Gideon and Julian.

10.15 - Save the Children briefing.

11.15 - Global Challenge welcome lunch hosted be Chander Sethi (press attendance too!)

3pm - Sightseeing trip to Red Fort and Silver Market. Dinner in local restaurant and transfer to Old Delhi Station (Shyama Prasad, Mukherji Marg.)

9.30pm - Overnight sleeper train departs to Pathankot (arrive at 7.30am Sunday 7th)

Sunday 7th October (Pathankot to Dharamsala)

Arrive for lunch and check in to hotel.

Visit to H.H.Dalai Lama residence and monastery.

Dinner and pack for trek.

Monday 8th October (Mcleod Ganj - Mareri Village 2050m 14km)

Pass Tibetan Children's village and on to Satobari village. Steep descent to Ghera village. Ascent to Kareri village, overnight camp outside village.

Tuesday 9th October (Kareri - Bahl Village 2300m 12km)

Descent to Rawa village. Steep ascent for 3hrs through mixed forest of oak, rhodedendron and pine trees. Overnight camp by small river near Bahl Village.

Wednesday 10th October (Bahl - Triund 2975m 12km)

Steep ascent through mixed forest. Triund is an alpine meadow on top of a ridge with good views of peaks of Dhaula Dhar on one side and Kangra valley on the other side. Overnight camping.

Thursday 11th October (Triund - Laka 3500m 10km)

Gradual ascent to Laka Got (the site of a temporary Shepherd summer camp, situated at the snout of a small glacier). Weather permitting walk over Glacier to Lahes cave - an overnight shelter for shepherds going over the mountain. Return to Triund for overnight camping.

Friday 12th October (Triund - Mcleod Ganj (Dharamsala) via Laheta 12km

Trek over grassy ridge (4km) - view of valley and snowy peaks. Steep descent through Laheta village to Bhagsu village. 15 min drive to hotel just outside Mcleod Ganj. Evening celebratory meal with local folk music.

Saturday 13th October

Shop and explore. Lunch then transfer to Pathankot. Overnight train to Delhi departs 6.40pm.

Sunday 14th October

Transfer to Kolcata departing Delhi at 1.15pm. Arrive in Kolcata and transfer to hotel. Briefing by Save the Children India on project visits. Group dinner.

Monday 15th October and Tuesday 16th October

Project visits/sightseeing depending on groups

Tuesday evening start of departures. I leave for flight at 8pm.

My First Duathlon - 12th September

I did it! Ok so it was only a sprint one, but for me they are the worst! We started off at Skidby Mill and began with a 2 mile run down and round the corner, then returning the same way back up the hill. This distance isn't really a problem, but the speed that everyone was running (and probably the fact that i had been munching chocolate through the day!) was a little too much for me and I didn't feel too great...I finished the run thinking that i wouldn't be able to carry on, but I saw that I wasn't alone and that helped :-) I walked a bit before hopping onto my bike, but as soon as I set off I was filled with renewed enthusiasm and from then on I was on a mission to catch up with a body I could see in front of me! I actually never caught up with him, but he didn't get away from me and I did pass others so it was ok :-) The cycle was only 9/10 miles ( I can remember which!) so it wasn't too bad and I seemed to be doing well! However..during the last 1-2 miles (that's a total guess as I haven't got a little bike computer yet!) there were a couple of people overtaking me on their nifty little road bikes..I was in top gear pedalling as fast as I could and they still sailed past me...gotta get me one of those!

So....how did I do? Well I was waiting for the times to be put onto the website but they don't appear to be there so I will have to say that I was about 52 minutes I think...which wasn't the slowest time so I think it was pretty good for my first race! Yey!

The final race for this season is this Wednesday, which I believe is a 9 mile cycle and then a 2 mile run, which I think I will be far better at as my legs seem to be able to run forever when they are warm! This will be followed by a celebratory drink and some food kindly provided by the little pub just down the road, so a great chance to meet more of the club and get in with the crazy barracudas! Anyway, we'll see how it goes and I will keep you posted!

;-)

Some pictures for the girls (Laura's Birthday) :-)

Here are some good ones to make you smile guys!

The Great Yorkshire Run

On Sunday the 9th September, Sheffield hosted the first Great Yorkshire Run..and I took part..yey! Tom and I travelled over to Sheffield to my parents house on the Saturday (via Decathlon-the best shop in the world, to buy a few things for my trek, sleeping bag, another fleece, t-shirts etc.) That reminds me, I haven't tried out my sleeping bag yet! Anyway...possibly not the best thing to be doing the night before a run, but as it was my friend Laura's Birthday (Hi Laura if you're reading!) we went out in Sheffield in the evening after zooming to my parents house for the fastest bbq in the history of bbq's (possibly with the exception of those taking place in the antarctic). A great night was had by all at Laura (and Eleni's!) party and despite the late night and consumption of alcohol, we managed to drag ourselves up to get to Sheffield for the run.

We all (my parents, Tom and I) met Madeleine (who had first told me about the run) and we proceeded to warm up with the Mr Motivator style dude who was up on a platform busting some moves. As always with this sort of event, the atmosphere was great and very touching. Apparently there were some famous people there running...but I only read that after the event! The Elite athletes taking part were amazing, we saw them on their return journey as we were heading out, they were running about twice our speed and looking completely composed and quite comfortable!

Our aim was to run the 10km in under an hour, which we both did...yey! We set out timing our kilometers to make sure that we were under 6 minutes/km and celebrating each time we reached a km marker! It was great that although the route took us quite a bit away from the start and therefore our supporters (yes ok there were only 3!) couldn't really see us en route, that there were people along the way clapping us and children running alongside us at some points! Also, what I thought was a great idea, there were bands at several points along the way playing different types of music. This was lovely to hear and helped me to stay motivated too :-) At the 5km mark Madeleine and I seperated and ran our own races...not as fun running alone, but I did speak to a few interesting people along the way! We were both looking forward to a certain point along the route, where we had seen a car wash style "thing" set up, which we could run through to cool down in the fine spray. This was at about 7km I think, so very welcoming!

I made it back in 54.02 (1370 th position) and Madeleine was right on my heels with a time of 56.31 in 1672 nd position. There were 4 and a half thousand people there on the day so this wasn't bad at all! I am aiming for sub 50mins next time though :-) as is Madeleine I would imagine!

Anyway, I am well and truly hooked to these events so looking for the next one now!

My First Barracuda Club Ride!

I went out on my first group bike ride, which was great :-) Meeting lots of the Barracudas (sounds like some sort of secret society eh?!) made me feel much more at ease and positive about entering events with them. They were all on road bikes except for Jacqui (who told me about the club and has been great getting me to and from the training sessions!) so immediately we were at a disadvantage with our mountain bikes, but everybody was very nice and they did keep stopping to make sure everyone was together. We went from Skidby mill, through Little Weighton...I can't remember the route exactly, but I remember a few names of places...Rayworth, Eppleworth/Eppleton?...Anyway, we did about 25 miles I think and at a fair pace so it was a good challenge! I thoroughly enjoyed it, the scenery was lovely, the weather was nice...the flies didn't taste so good and I did have red eyes by the end as I think the flying beasties in the area were daring each other to fly into my eyes!

I have joined a Triathlon Club!!

I told you to check out this one! Yes, I am now a member of the Barracuda Triathlon Club (Take a look at their website, they're a great club...www.barracudatriclub.com)

Ok so I haven't actually done any triathlons yet, but i am very willing and getting really into the training. This weekend I went to Cliff Pratt (also a very good place to go for any biking equipment or advice...www.cpcycles.com) to sort myself out with a helmet so that I can actually enter the races. I was happily choosing one at a suitable price...good ventilation...small enough for my tiny head....and next thing i know, we're walking out with 2 new bikes and 2 helmets!!! What happened in there?! Ha ha! We did get a good deal and some cool stuff so it was ok :-)

So...since then, Tom and I have been on some good bike rides (obviously we had to use them the day we bought them!) out to Hornsea, we went over to the the Humber Bridge...and now even to work and back! As you might imagine we have had many a comment on our arriving at work on our new matching toys...but we know we're the coolest kids at RB so all is fine! ;-)

Anyways, I have my first Barracuda outing tomorrow..a bike ride out from Skidby (that's where the hills are..eek!) so I will see how I go and report back soon for anyone who is interested!

Photo's coming very soon (when i've charged up my camera so that i can upload!)

Weekend in Appleton le Moor

What a lovely bank holiday! Tom and I went to visit his parents in Appleton le Moor, which is a brilliant way to spend a weekend anyway as it is so relaxed and scenic out there! However..this time was different as i took my trekking gear :-) Oh...except for my walking socks...thanks for the loan Deb!



The saturday was spent out fishing off a boat in Witby (yes i realise this didn't really help my training!) It was great fun speeding out to sea in the boat, although i did lose the feeling in my fingers as i was holding on so tight! I took to catching the moment rather than the fish...yes i was the onboard camera man! (I have lots of photo's of the weekend, but haven't uploaded them yet so i will add them tomorrow! Unfortunately it got a bit rough not long after we got out there so we headed back to shore and back to ranch to start the next stage of the fisherman's day out...the bbq ;-)

On Sunday it was time to don walking gear and head out into the countryside. With the promise of real local ales we set out to Cropton, where we found a brewery...yay! It was a lovely day, so i got to experience my gear in conditions more like we will get in India (i think) than our weekend in the Peaks! Yet again, my boots served me well and filled me with confidence that my tootsies will be quite happy for the trip :-)

Monday...we went back to Witby to battle against the tourists out for the Bank Holiday...hmmm...i guess that could count as training...perhaps more mentally than physically...I think it takes a lot of patience and mental strength to remain calm in such situations! Anyway, so not too much of your conventional trekking was done, but I had a great time and that's what counts ha ha! Ooh, check out my next entry for some good physical training....

Thanks for reading and if anyone is interested in going out to stay in Appleton Le Moor (which i would strongly recommend!) in a lovely little cottage with a garden that leads straight out into the countryside, please contact me and I will put you in touch with Tom's parents! I will post some photo's of the cottage at some point.

I have now hit my target!! So how did i do it?!

What a relief to see that 100% on my website! I cant quite believe that i managed it, but here i am with the hardest bit over ;-) ready and raring to go!

so...as i'm enjoying writing my little stories I thought that I would write a little bit (well...i'll try to write a little bit, but being the chatterbox that i am, it may be a little more!) about how i managed to achieve my target.

First and foremost there was the kindness and generosity of friends, family and also employees at Reckitt Benckiser who hardly knew me! Not to mention the people I spent 5 days on a Health and Safety course with! Thanks to Mary, Jen and Paul, who got the ball rolling with their very generous donations :-) Always a lot of pressure on the first to be generous!

Madeleine and I got on the case with other fundraising ideas pretty much straight away and came up with:

Putting collection boxes in the coffee shop

This has provided us with a steady flow of donations over the last 7 months or so.

The Sodexho Indian Themed Meal

This was a fantastically successful event where we persuaded Reckitt Benckiser to pay for Sodexho to hold an Indian themed lunchtime in the staff canteen, for which all sales landed on our websites! We couldn't believe that it was all being donated to us, we expected just the profits! We did a lot of promotion for the event, which was held during Save the Children week (cunning eh?!) and then decorated the canteen with balloons and banners on the day. We stood and flashed our smiles at people as they were picking up their trays...not sure if this helped or not....but i think it did! Oh and also one of the guys who worked in the canteen was a DJ (happy coincidence!) so brought in his equipment and erm....interesting music collection (mostly 80's cheese if i remember rightly!) which perked up the diners too! We raised a whopping £240 each from this!

Crazy Hat Day

Another event held during Save the Children week (yes the people of RB Hull do hate us!) I believe that this was one of my crazy ideas, a little different to a dress down day...and I have to say, much more fun! We asked people to come to work in a crazy hat (or just a hat!) on this day and pay us for the privilege :-) Madeleine and I made our hats for the day out of witches hats...and i bet you cant guess what we made them in to?...yes you've got it....Mountains! They were great i have to say! We had a lot of good hats worn and although there wasn't a huge percentage of hat wearers wandering around we did raise £81.15 each! I do think that a lot of our donations were from people who were guilted into it due to the lack of headwear!

Following this event we received a lovely email to tell us that the Sales and Marketing team had hosted a 'dress down day' instead of 'crazy hat day' and had a donation of £35 for us!

Easter Cake Sale

As it was Easter, and it is the law to eat chocolate at this happy time ;-) we decided to don our aprons and knock together some Easter buns...these comprised chocolate cornflakes/coco pops/all bran to make little nests, which housed a few mini eggs...how sweet! They went down very well and we sold out! From this we raised £32.27 each!

From this event we also drummed up a bit of extra cake selling business...we received an offer of £35 each to make some more buns for a meeting held by Stuart Shaw in Sales and Marketing...which we did!

Veet Product Sale

We were given a huuuuuge load of Veet products which we were told we could sell in order to raise money for our charity...so we did! We set ourselves up in the canteen (following an interesting experience with a dumb waiter!) and asked for donations for the products. These flew out, which raised an extra £87.63 for us!

Body Shop Fundraiser

My wonderful mum held a body shop party, where she promoted my event and managed to get £35 from a raffle and donations from friends :-)

Harpic Sales

Mike in NTG decided to ask for donations for some harpic products that were going as swag, which raised £3.72 each!

Hen do dares

Whilst out on a hen do in "fame" costume I made myself a little bit from doing dares...Pauline, my netball coach convinced people to give money for me to be daft (which i am fine with!)...i raised £9 from doing the splits and running across the dance floor and doing a "fame leap"!

Grand National Sweepstake

The lovely Mary Pratt organised a Grand National Sweepstake and donated the money to me...thanks Mary! This got me £27!

Cricket World Cup Sweepstake

Using an idea given to me very kindly by Madeleine i organised a sweepstake for the cricket world cup...this raised £20!


I think that's about it, as well as the Summer Ball and Netball tournament. I hope you've enjoyed reading...it was certainly fun doing most of this!

I will post some photo's as soon as i can :-)

My Netball Tournament!

I'm afraid as it took me so long to start this blog malarky, i am talking about events in reverse order! So...



15th July - my netball tournament.



With the help of my wonderful netball coach Pauline amongst others, I organised a morning of netball fun. I had 9 teams enter (including two teams from Reckitt Benckiser), who each donated £15 entry fee. These were mostly put straight onto my website, apart from a couple which payed for the hire of the courts (with the teams permission of course!). I should maybe mention that Dave Windley at the university sports centre very kindly let me have half price hire of the courts to help me out with the fundraising :-) Anyway...along with teams that we play in county and works leagues we had two teams come all the way from Unilever in the Wirral (I hope i have spelt that right?!) to play! They paricularly enjoyed the day and suggested that I organise one every year (perhaps because noone stood a chance against them!), but this was very good feedback and something i will definately consider!



Despite it being a very dull and wet day, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and I had some lovely raffle prizes donated by teams and individuals. The raffle was to raise money towards the trek generally, so this money went towards my vaccinations and equipment, which was a huge help! I raised a lot overall from the day so was very pleased that I had got my act together and organised it :-)

The day raised £164 which was fantastic!

I will post a few photo's of the event soon...

Reckitt Benckiser Summer Ball

On 19th August it was our biggest fundraiser so far...the summer ball! Madeleine and I got involved in the organising of this annual event this year to generate more money for Save the Children. Each year the money raised from the event is donated to save the children as part of Reckitt Benckiser's save 100000 lives campaign, however, this year, the money went through our websites to the charity and i'm very happy to say that this helped me to achieve my target! yey! After lots of hard work put in my myself, Madeleine and Kerry (the annual organiser) the ball took place and was a huge success! An extra even that we added this year was Madeleine and I putting ourselves in stocks (made very kindly by my fantastic dad) to have wet sponges thrown at us! We thought it best to do this at the end of the night to catch people in their most generous state (post alcohol). Unfortunately some people were having far too much fun to hear the DJ announce that we were outside (at Ramada Jarvis, Willerby) in stocks, but the people that did find us were very generous (or mean!) and helped to raise £35.10 from the event!

We held a raffle, which was very successful and through the donation of many great prizes by companies such as Costco, JJB, The Deep, Hollywood Bowl, Cannons Health Club and many more, we raised a fair few pennies! Total yet to be confirmed!

So..enjoy the photos!

More pictures from Training weekend

Training Weekend in Crowden - 18-19th August

This weekend i was in Crowden in the Peak District for a training weekend organised by Classic Tours. I travelled there with Madeleine (who is also taking part in the challenge and with whom i have done the majority of my fundraising events..please have a read of her blog as she set it up aaaages ago and has actually got lots of good stuff on there already! Her site is http://madeleinechadwick.blogspot.com/ ) Anyway...we arrived not really knowing what to expect but looking forward to meeting some of the other people chosen for the trek. We met Anand Sharma, Chris Briggs, Seema Sardana and Mark Astill (Hi guys if you're reading!). All very nice people i should add! As it turned out we also met one of our guides, Julian, who led us on the walks this weekend. He seemed very nice and seemed to know what he was doing which reassured me! Then there was the lovely Emma from Save The Children, she will also be coming with us on the trek and having lived in India for a year, has lots of good advice and stories to tell!

So...we spent the day walking over the peaks on Saturday, which was the telling day for me as i was wearing my new walking boots for the first time! I'm extremely happy to say that they were wonderful and a spiffing purchase (even if i do say so myself!), so light and comfortable! It rained for most of the day too so that was a good opportunity to test out my new "trekking gear" which also passed with flying colours (My trousers...what a fantastic buy...poor Madeleine was very patient with me as i expressed my joy with their magic ability to repel water every 5 minutes or so!) The day was a good chance to get to know the guys mentioned above, this was really good and filled me with confidence that the trek will be a thoroughly enjoyable experience! In the evening Julian very kindly went on a tesco run for booze...really, what sort of youth hostel doesn't have a bar! I could hardly believe that he suggested the idea considering we were there for a weekend of exercise! What a great way to spend the evening after a day in the rain..i very much enjoyed the banter, although I perhaps shouldn't have had enjoyed the wine so much...but hey, at the time it was great!

Unfortunately Sunday was cut a little short as the hills were foggy up top and the guides thought it best to stay low and go for a shorter walk. I was amazed by the scenery (again, sorry Madeleine for going on about it!) I will certainly be venturing back out there! So, after a lunch back at the hostel we all said our "goodbye"s and "good luck"s and went our seperate ways. Needless to say, I had a fantastic time and found the experience very enlightening. The morale of the group was inspiring, such lovely people all keen to get out there and make a difference. There were a fair few trips and stumbles along the way but cheery faces were always to be seen in all directions! Well done troop!