We are the champions - my friends
And we'll keep on fighting - till the end -
We are the champions -
We are the champions
No time for losers
And we'll keep on fighting - till the end -
We are the champions -
We are the champions
No time for losers
MY blog today is dedicated to the 17 men and women who are running the 2012 Brathay 10 in 10 challenge with me. They are all heroes, men and women of steel with big hearts of gold. I salute them all.
They/we are the proverbial champions of Windermere.
In no particular order:
ADRIAN SHANDLEY: A fun guy who can play cards as well as he can advise people on the attractiveness of ETFs (low cost investment funds). Also, when he’s in the mood, he can’t half shift around the roads of Windermere. A lovely sense of humour, indeed some would say wicked.
NICK WOODWARD: A man who seems to have been hewn from the slate mines of Coniston (but was actually born in Poulton-le-Fylde). Nick is a brick-house of a man who you would not want to mess with on a Friday night outside the Ambleside kebab house. A man who you would want alongside you in the trenches. He also possesses a special wife – ‘Bigun’ who makes special banana and chocolate chip muffins.
DAVEY GREEN: The heartbeat of the 18 Brathay10in10 runners. However many hours he spends on the road, he is always happy, singing and cracking jokes. And he possesses one of the best backsides in running history. A man with great humour who women adore.
DAVID (FOXY) BAYLEY: A running legend who is about to complete four Brathay10in10s, an outstanding achievement. He’s loud but he has a big heart. Don’t do any more 10in10s!
DIANE SHAW: The woman who keeps Leeds railway station running smoothly. She is also an excellent runner who wears her heart on her sleeve. Many a time have I heard her crying while she has been running. Tough and lovely at the same time.
HOWARD BAILEY: Two hundred marathons down and at least another 300 in him! He’s a running machine who just grinds out the miles. He’s the Mr Reliable of the Brathay10in10 – and would make a wonderful pace setter for the London marathon.
JIM META: My ice bath companion. A top bloke who is doing his second 10in10. He has a fantastic attitude to life – enjoy it while it lasts. He has a super line in thongs, shirts and shorts. One of the stars of the Brathayt10in10 show. A guy who never has a bad word to say about anyone.
KAZ HURRELL: A super runner who sets her stall out from the start and rarely veers off it. Like Howard, she grinds out the miles and her face never flinches. Her reward for grinding out the miles is to have a gin and tonic in the ice bath!
KEITH LUXON: A quiet man who is simply an outstanding runner. Quality, quality.
LEE BONIFACE: A hairdresser who cuts a dashing figure on the race course. Like Keith, a quality runner who has a wry sense of humour. Self-deprecating about his profession.
MATT DUNN: A running legend who possesses three of the most beautiful children that God has ever looked down on. It’s either Matt or Sally to win this challenge. Matt will look 21 when he is 51!
PAUL DEWAR: A quiet innkeeper from Ulverston who takes his running deadly seriously. A stunning pair of legs and a super backside. A fantastic, lean and mean runner who has supplied ale from his inn to keep us going.
PAUL FOSTER: How Paul is cranking out such fantastic times is beyond me. His ankles are smashed to smithereens but he’s getting better every day. If fully fit, he would be challenging both Sally and Matt.
ROBERT DALLISON: A man who has faced the precipice and come back to fight another day. A man with true grit in his soul. He will finish the Brathay10in10 come what way.
STUART PYPER: A man who wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s had an emotional Brathay10in10, veering from the utopia of day one to the misery of day three. But he’s still going strong and will finish. He has the back-up of a wonderful girlfriend (marry her!)
TOKS OGUNDARI: Toks set her stall out from the start – get round the course in one piece, even if it means walking most of the way and stopping off for fish and chips. Another star of the Brathay10in10 show.
SALLY FORD: A running hero. A super runner with a wicked dry sense of humour. Words fail me when it comes to Sally’s prowess as a runner. I think she will win the Brathay10in10 although Matt will run her a close second (I could be wrong).
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS! Support us!
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