19/04/2012 - Going, Gurkha, Gone.

Well following our invitation to Gurkha training last week, sadly we have to report that it has been cancelled. 

To say we're disappointed is an understatement. We had been looking forward to training with the Gurkhas since the day we signed up for Trailwalker and could only hope we'd be in a position to raise enough sponsorship and pledge to qualify, which we have. 

Our excitement at being offered a place on Gurkha Training rapidly turned to dismay as we were informed by email from Oxfam yesterday that the training which was scheduled for this Saturday has had to be cancelled due to a lack of numbers wanting to take part. We can understand the need for Oxfam and The Gurkha Welfare Trust wanting to fully utilise this event though we suggest that had Oxfam given teams more time to raise sponsorship and having the training day a little later may have had a different result. Instead we have been asked back next year, which does defeat the object of making this part of our training build-up to Trailwalker. 

On a more positive note, we have done very well with sponsorship recently. We would like to thank Roger Haydon (Polly's stepfather), Vincent Fairclough (you never know when you'll need a good lawyer),  Dave Nanson of DBS Environmental, James Lockhart and Paul Whitmarsh of Whitmarsh Lockhart, Lisa Hathway, Jane Harris of the Morgan Foundation and our Chairman Steve Morgan on behalf of The Morgan Foundation for your generous sponsorship. Our total has now leapt up to £2,847.14 excluding Gift Aid which is just amazing.

As we have an extra weekend now, it won't be wasted so we have planned a 5hr walk in the Peak District venturing a little further afield this time. We're planning a 21km walk taking in 4 hills which should yield us about 750m of muscle sapping climb - by our standards thats a lot, so it will be our hardest yet. We're looking to take on Shutlingsloe Hill also known as 'The Matterhorn of The Peak' and Birchenough Hill - the site of a B17 Flying Fortress crash in WWII and I am planning on taking the camera! The planned route is here.

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