Saint George's day 3–5km fun run, walk and wheelchair push
The Building Together Fund tried something new in April: a sponsored Fun Run and Walk around Moor Park.
The weather was dry (but very cold when sitting in a wheelchair!). Over a hundred people took part and the registration fees alone raised £230. With the sponsorship money raised the total added to the Building Together Fund currently stands at over £1700. There was much behind-the-scenes work undertaken to get the forms drawn up and the task was done by Lyn Fenton, who also started the races. The 5km race was won by Jack Ellis from the Cubs, who outran some of the other participants four times his age!
A tent was erected by 
Peter
and Ian Fenton to give shelter to the workers who diligently filled the certificates
and checked the
registration details. The marshals Ray Armstrong, Jan Astley, Ron Black, Ian
Fenton, Andrew McKinnell, Margaret Squire and Thelma Williams were dotted
around
the park directing
the walkers and runners on their routes. Moira Black was the First Aider present.
As this was such a success it is hoped the run will become an annual event.
You
never know, with longer to organise the publicity to clubs we should be able
to increase numbers year on year. The London Marathon, after all, started much
smaller than the uplifting epic military operation it has become today.
There was Saint George and the dragon. (I had the dragon on my lap and I will not repeat what Saint George said about the aptness of the part for me!) We had such fun walking down the road from the Church to the park: Speedy Gonzalez, the wheelchair being pushed by Saint George, had two English flags fluttering in the breeze. People waved and honked their horns as they passed by. One or two others had the English flag painted on their T-shirts, but I personally thought the walk lacked a bit of sparkle.
I challenge you all to think of zany things to wear next year. The London Marathon just wouldn't be the same without the fellas in their tutus, the gorilla outfits or the diving suit so bravely worn by one man. Go on, think about it now and by the time next run is organised you will have the ideas ready.
Do you belong to an athletic club, leisure centre, or know of a society with a lot of wheelchair users, or any zany group who would love to join us next year? I would love to hear about them, then we could contact them with details of the next walk well ahead of time. Hopefully we could double, or even treble, the number of entrants next time. I'm still joyfully persistent! I wonder if we could get a firm to sponsor the event? The London Marathon is all sponsored, so why not us?
