Marathon runners set sights on helping local homeless people
Well done to Charley and Valerie who completed the London marathon last weekend. We caught up with them last week to discuss their next challenge, HARP24.
Charley completed the London marathon in an amazing 3 hours 13 minutes and 9 seconds, and Valerie ran it in an impressive 4 hours 39 minutes, despite having an ongoing Achilles injury. Now, they are both setting their sights on helping local homeless people at our 24 hour running event.
If you don’t know already, HARP24 is a 24 hour running festival taking place on 24 June at Westcliff Rugby Club. Everyone from experienced ultra runners to fun runners will be taking part in the event, as either teams or as solo runners. The winner in each category completes the most laps of a 4 mile course through the Essex countryside.
Charley and Valerie are both regulars at the event. Last year, Charley ran a whopping 97.6 miles - securing first place, whilst Valerie ran a hugely impressive 75.4 miles and came third. Both are now looking to increase their distances.
Charley is aiming to run ONE HUNDRED miles this year! She told us: “I'm a bit nervous, the pressure’s on! But, I know that I’ll enjoy it. It’s like a running party, everyone’s in it together.
“This year, I’m aiming to raise £110 for HARP. The people that they support are just everyday people who have fallen through the cracks. Anyone can get into that situation.”
Valerie has already raised £350 for local homeless people through her Just Giving sponsorship page. She said: “I’m running HARP24 for the third time now, in 2014 I ran 71 miles and in 2016 I did 75! I have decided to raise money for HARP, as I believe everybody should have a roof over their head.
“Homelessness can happen to anybody - regardless of their age, their gender or social background. It ruins lives, devastates families and has a costly impact on the whole of society.”
To find out how you can enter HARP24, visit: www.harp24.org.uk
And you can sponsor Charley and Valerie on their JustGiving pages:
