It runs in the family

Seasoned runner and grandmother to four grandchildren, Sarah Jackaman, has not only achieved phenomenal running achievements since starting her new hobby at age 40, but has seen her family literally following in her footsteps too.

Sarah started running when her son was 10 and she pays tribute to the friends she made at Castle Point Joggers who played a huge role in her running successes over the subsequent years. Of all the achievements Sarah recalls, completing the London Marathon in 2013 really stands out, as does winning Best Female Duo with her daughter Liz at HARP24 in 2016.

HARP24 is a local fundraising running festival that is organised by homeless charity HARP. The event sees runners complete as many four mile laps as they can within a 24-hour time frame, and the mother-daughter combo covered a phenomenal 56 miles between them over the 24 hour period. Whilst Sarah is now overcoming injury and is enjoying other sports to stay fit, her grandson has recently been dabbling with running at their local junior parkrun, and it is clear to see that the family are following Sarah’s healthy lifestyle.

HARP24 organisers have this year introduced a new junior fun run for local children that want to get involved, and they also hope that this will offer families like the Jackamans the opportunity to enjoy the event together. The event takes place on 23rd June at Westcliff Rugby Club and all children aged 4-14 are welcome to come along and take on the new HARP2.4 race, the brand new 2.4km fun run.

Sarah said “HARP24 has a great atmosphere, other runners are really friendly and the team that organise the event are fantastic.” She continued “it is an event that anyone can do, you don’t have to be an amazing runner. Cakes, tea, and coffee are available all night and there are always people to chat to.”

HARP2.4 is now open for entry, and there is also still time to register for the main event as a solo, duo, or team of up to 12 runners. For more details head to www.harp24.org.uk