Judys Journey

2009-05-28T19:34:00.006+01:00

Well you have done it again.

I originally set the target at £3,000, raised it to £5,000 and then to £6,200 thanks to an idea from Roger Phillips of Radio Merseyside. You helped me to reach that figure which seemed phenomenal, so, I raised the target to £7,000 and then to £7,500 and we have now passed even that total!! What can I say but a really sincere thank you to all you very generous people out there.

This time however I am not going to raise the target again but I am now going to leave it find its own level. You have all been so generous but it is a great cause and sadly more & more members of our armed forces are coming home with life changing injuries. Even if you have already donated, and if you are reading this you almost certainly will have done, have you told your friends and colleagues about what can be achieved if we all work together? If you haven't then there is still time to tell them and for them to donate too, read on...........

When David set up the Justgiving site and this Blog for me, - well you didn't really think I did the technical bit did you? - he set it to remain open until the 14th August. As things are going so well, I think that I will now leave the target figure where it is and see where we end up then.

I am sure you are all sick of photos of me, so here is something a little different.

Hero the H4H bear who came to Lancaster with me, but who opted for the dry in Peter's car because he said his fur went frizzy in the wet, has been to try out carriage driving with Formby RDA Carriage Driving Group. As you see from the picture he was properly kitted out with hard hat and Hi Viz but he did check to see that we had harnessed up correctly and luckily we passed muster. Not up to the Household Cavalry standard may be, but we do have chocolate biscuits in the carriage house!!!

2009-05-21T17:06:00.003+01:00

This is just to update you all. As you know, the target figure was raised to £6,200 as suggested by Roger Phillips of Radio Merseyside but we passed that figure this morning, so the new target is now a massive £7,000 and I think with luck we might just reach it.

All the money raised to date was sent to Help for Heroes today, but it is not to late to donate as the Justgiving site will remain open until early August. The blisters are healing well and you will be glad to hear that I am back off to Aqua Aerobics again tomorrow - wouldn't like you to think I am getting lazy now the walk is over.

Judy's Journey Day 6 Forton - Alexandra Barracks Lancaster - Tuesday 19th May

2009-05-19T18:02:00.010+01:00

Well I got there.
OK, I was four minutes late but I made it and when I have finished collecting all the money, I hope to have raised £6,200 which will have made it all very worthwhile - even the large blister I got yesterday and the soaking that I have had every day since Friday, sympathy please - Arghhhhh.

I was met outside Alexandra Barracks by Emma, and Jill and Karl who had travelled up together. They warned me that there was a reporter from Radio Lancashire waiting for me with a microphone inside the barracks gates - panic immediately set in. However, it all went well, at least I hope it did, and I got another great welcome from the soldiers waiting for me, including Capt. Steve Firth and WO2 Dene Hickling from the Staff in Lancaster and the soldiers from 4 Lancs. Thank you very much gentlemen, it was good of you all to be there for me.

Peter took some photos, once we managed to get the H4H flag the right way up, oops! and with the interview over, we all went inside. This time I got the promised cup of tea and cake as well - this was really good, since everyone knows that cake is good for blisters!!! At least that is my story.

To finish on a more serious note, I am really glad that I have done this walk and I hope that as well as raising the money, I will also have played some small part in making more people aware of Help for Heroes and how the money raised is being used to make a real difference to the lives of our wounded servicemen and women. None of the money donated is used to pay for H4H costs. The H4H Trading Co Ltd is making enough to cover all overheads and and provide donations to the charity.

In the same way, just in case anyone was wondering, every penny that I have raised will go to H4H. All the publicity material I have used and the B&B costs have all been paid for by an anonymous family member - haven't they Peter?

I hope to have collected all the money within the next week so please keep checking my justgiving web site which will remain open for a little while yet. There is still time to tell your friends about Judy's Journey and every single donation will really help. Go to the H4H website and read what is being done but how much more is still needed.

To all my friends and family, thanks for supporting me in this, now I am throwing down the gauntlet - it is your turn to show our armed forces that we think they are the best, and that the best is what they deserve.

Judys Journey Day 5 - Gt Eccleston to Forton Monday 18th May

2009-05-18T21:18:00.008+01:00

No pain No gain!! Today was a really hard day.

Raining when we woke, heavy drizzle when I left Great Eccleston ( see photo above) and absolutely chucking it down before I had walked the first mile, what a surprise! At least the weather has been consistent!

Peter, being the star that he is, kept driving back to me to check I was okay. I had started the day in a Hi-Viz jacket but quickly had to change into pink gortex when the rain got too bad. Now bright pink gortex may not necessarily have been a good choice as no one could miss it and I was targeted with increasing accuracy by several extremely large lorries and totally drenched with spray. One of those days when I just hate having to wear glasses!

By the time I reached the A6 the sun came out at last but just before walking into Garstang, I felt the first ominous prickle of a blister - wet socks I'm afraid. Peter had arrived in Garstang first and met up with 2 friends from home, Paddy & Colin, who had driven up to meet me. When I arrived, looking very much like a drowned rat, I got a fantastic and noisy welcome from Paddy so that within thirty seconds everybody within a radius of five miles knew what I was doing!

I changed my socks, dressed the blister (in the ladies loo, not the public bar in case you are wondering - there are limits!) and eventually set off again in the direction of the B & B at Forton.

Earlier, I had decided to walk a little further than planned today, to shorten tomorrow's final walk into Lancaster. I did this, but it became increasingly hard as my foot was causing problems again. However, I had no intention of wimping out but to say that I was pleased to see Peter at the rendezvous point where the photo above was taken was an understatement!

A hot shower, a cup of tea, and having operated on my foot again I felt a lot better, and I'm now looking forward to Lancaster tomorrow!!!!

Judys Journey Day 4 - Broughton Crossroads to Gt Eccleston - 17th May

2009-05-17T18:25:00.015+01:00

People of my age should not be subjected to sudden shocks. There I was in Barton, when all of a sudden a large hand landed on my shoulder from behind and a gruff military voice said, "Hello" and guess what, it was my brother with his new dog Maisy - all 6 foot 1 of him, the brother not the dog! What a lovely surprise!!

Making no allowances for my feet, the next 3 miles went very quickly, partly because we had to "march" instead of walk and partly because we were catching up on the news. Thanks T - Great surprise to see you and Helen, now I know why you sent me 5 text messages yesterday. We got to Barton Grange where sister in law Helen had met up with Peter and Jill, Jill having come to do the afternoon session with me.

After a bowl of soup T & H set off back for Yorkshire and Jill & Peter moved the cars to Great Eccleston and Peter brought Jill back to walk with me. My brother is a really lucky so and so... because as we left, the heavens opened as you will see when I post the photos. My brother hooted loudly as he passed me on the road, warm, safe and dry in his car!! There really is no justice where brothers are concerned.

The road to Great Eccleston is extremely busy and in several places there is no footpath, tricky ! Jill, resplendent in Hi-Viz, walked me through the next 3 miles talking non stop. We stopped briefly to meet Peter again and then surprise No 2, Peter's business partner Eric who met me on Thursday, pulled up along side us with my god daughter Clare. They had been to watch a sponsored run in Chorley and had taken a huge detour to catch up with me again, how kind was that!

Having chatted for a few minutes, Jill and I continued to our destination and did the final 2 miles in pretty short order. In total Jill walked 5 miles, talking non stop, puffing on fags intermittently and is obviously a lot fitter than I thought! Thanks for looking after me Jill, all in all, a day full of surprises, but they made getting soaked again well worthwhile.

More tomorrow, keep spreading the word folks and I'll post the pictures when I get back on Tuesday.

2009-05-16T17:56:00.010+01:00

Judy's Journey Day 3 - Longton to Broughton Crossroads via Fulwood Barracks - Sat. 16th May

Woke to sunshine, but by the time breakfast was over it had started to rain again. Decided that it was only light so I would tough it out. Big mistake, so I had to hurriedly scramble into waterproofs within half a mile of leaving the B & B. Why do the pockets on trousers never line up with the pockets on waterproofs? Two miles down the road the rain eased and I decided to scramble out of them again. This time the sun stayed out and with Peter checking progress to see if I wanted anything, but actually checking that I hadn't gone into a shop for a sneaky bar of chocolate, I was soon in Preston.

We had planned the route so that there would be a spare 15 minutes in the schedule so I had a quick coffee to fill in some time and headed for Fulwood. Emma and David ( official photographer as well as son in law) were waiting for me with Peter about a mile and a half away from the barracks. Emma walked with me and Peter & David went ahead to recce.

Arrived at Fulwood one minute early - how is that for timing and was clapped in by Major Marshall and a reception committee, I even got a cup of tea, a biscuit and a cheque (see above) for which I was extremely grateful. David took some pictures and having thanked everyone concerned for giving up their time, I set off again in glorious sunshine.

Did you know that clouds have sat nav? Well they do. There I was walking along the A6 just over a mile from Fulwood feeling pleased because I had passed the halfway point when suddenly.....

yes, you guessed it an extremely black cloud suddenly appeared from nowhere and with pinpoint accuracy proceeded to drench me before I could scramble back into the waterproofs. I was not happy! By the time I met Peter, about forty minutes later, I was largely dried out, unfortunately the rain had got into my phone so I had missed a message from a concerned relative who wondered if I had finished yet. By the time the phone had dried out enough to let me know he had rung, I had finished and I was on the way back to base to prepare for Day 4 by drying out two very soggy pairs of shoes.

Judy's Journey Day 2 - Churchtown lights to Longton - Friday 15th May

2009-05-15T17:51:00.013+01:00

Good weather for ducks this morning, but since I don't have oiled feathers Plan B went into operation! This involved going back to Altcar first to pick up the H4H flag as someone (no name) forgot to take it home after I left yesterday.

Plan B worked - By the time I got to Churchtown lights the rain was easing & although it didnt really stop it certainly wasn't as bad as it might have been - Cunning plan hey!

Emma has been in control of logistics today which involved making sure her mother didnt fall flat on her face whilst getting into waterproofs - its hard being a daughter!

Jill & Karl caught up with us at lunch and then both left their phones behind when we left Dunscar, and they think I'm geriatric!

Walk went well and I was ahead of schedule all day. Got to Willow Farm around 3.30pm and Emma dropped all the gear ahead of me and waved bye as I walked the final half mile. She then headed home to take this blog & post it for me.
More tomorrow!

2009-05-14T17:26:00.010+01:00

Judy's Journey Day 1 - Altcar Training Camp to Churchtown Traffic Lights - 14th May 2009

The first day started off well in spite of yesterday's forecast - no rain and only a light wind - perfect walking weather. We got to Altcar early enough for me to do a gentle warm up, then Major Hunter took Peter and me down to the Guard Room for the start. Thanks to everyone involved for the rousing send off, including the Commandant Bill, Roy who took the photos, the soldiers, local Councillors, the Merseyside H4H Organiser Dave and his wife Jenny and of course family - I even got a Piper, thank you all for being there.

The walk it self went to plan and all the timings were correct. A lady on a bike passed me walking up the Formby By- Pass and said that the walk had been mentioned on the Roger Phillips programme on Radio Merseyside again today. Lots of people waved and hooted car horns and at one point a friend stopped to give me encouragement - thanks Eric!!

At Woodvale, another friend, Pauline, joined me for the next four miles, and we walked through Ainsdale and Birkdale together, stopping to meet Peter for lunch, (a bowl of soup) on the way. During the afternoon a group of friends surprised me when I stopped at "Woodwards" in Birkdale, thanks guys it was really great to see you all and yes Karen, I really fell for it - nice one !!!

Karl & Jill joined me to walk through Southport, actually Karl walked and Jill drove the car so that she could bring me home at the end of Day 1. In fact, I felt very comfortable, so I walked a further 1.3 miles to the Churchtown traffic lights so that tomorrow's route will now be shorter by that amount. This was a calculated decision as storms are forecast again for tomorrow.

Thanks to the unknown gentleman to came up to me in Woodwards and gave me a donation and to all my friends who met me along the way at different stages during the day. All in all a great start. More tomorrow.

2009-05-13T20:41:00.008+01:00

Training is over and tomorrow I leave for the first stage of my 62 mile journey to Lancaster. At the moment it is pouring with rain and it is also pretty windy. The forecast for tomorrow is not much better - no surprise there then!!

I just wanted to say a few very special "Thank You's" before I leave. Firstly the family, and especially Peter for being so supportive all through my training. Secondly Sue, my physio who encouraged me do this in the first place, and we both know that it is largely down to you Sue that I can attempt it at all. Then there is Albert who has helped tremendously with media involvement. Gel who has done the sports massage and Netty my gym trainer have been great, thank you both for all your expertise and for making me laugh a lot. I have also had a very good off road area on which to train, so thanks to the person who organised that for me, it has really been invaluable.

But the biggest thanks must go to all of you who have already donated to this appeal. Every penny that you have given to Help for Heroes, will go to provide practical and direct support for our wounded. All the overheads of the charity are funded through Help for Heroes Trading Limited and not through donations..
If you haven't donated yet, there is still plenty of time and there's a link through to my
justgiving page from here. The page will remain active for a few weeks yet. If you have been following this blog, you will know that my target figure has been raised on three occasions already and will shortly be raised again to £6,200. Fantastic, and it's all down to all of you out there, please keep spreading the word.

I will be updating the blog whilst on the walk so keep reading and I hope to see some of you on the way to Lancaster. Anyone got any water skis or a canoe?

2009-05-08T11:22:00.004+01:00

Sometimes (not often) even I am lost for words.
Two different things have happened this morning and both have really made an impression on me . The first was a friend ringing to tell me that Maj. Phil Packer was being interviewed on TV - thanks Sally- Phil will complete the London Marathon tomorrow having walked just under two miles a day every day since 26th April - how "gutsy" is that Listening to him talking about how he has faced dealing with being told he might never walk again was extremely moving but also very inspirational. As you all know, I am already very focused on my walk, but if my spirits had been flagging, listening to Phil would have bought me sharply back on track.
Then I opened the post and found an extremely large donation, so if you are reading this you will already have noticed that my target is now £5,000!!!
I can't thank everyone enough for all the support that I am getting. It just makes me even more determined to do my best to raise as much money as I can for H4H, so that they in turn can provide the best possible support for our injured members of the armed forces who deserve nothing less. I think I will stop there for now and get the trainers on again and get out there.

2009-04-30T09:07:00.005+01:00

Another great fundraising day yesterday and last night I got news about a donation which will take me over my original target figure. Obviously I am delighted and thank you all very much indeed - but we haven't finished yet.......
Since those of you who know me well know that I am always up for a challenge, - ie if you tell me that I won't be able to do something, I will do my best to prove you wrong, I am certainly not going to change the habits of a lifetime now!!! Therefore, I have just revised my target figure and have set the new target at £4,000 - optimistic - certainly, but I am going for it - with all your help of course.
Bye for now, it's just started raining hard and I am off to train - thank goodness for Gortex

2009-04-28T20:11:00.003+01:00

Today has been a red letter day on the fundraising front and I continue to be amazed by the generosity and support and encouragement that I have received from family and friends alike, far too many to name but you all know who you are - H4H is certainly inspiring a lot of people. Thanks again to everyone who has donated so far, I really am most grateful to you all.

Training is still going well and I have got over some blisters that I had last week. Luckily when I went for my sports massage today, Gel was too tactful to refer to the number of toes that are now covered in plaster, as I said in an earlier blog, zinc oxide plaster is not a good look - but it works.

The weather is bright and cooler this week which makes training very pleasant and I will continue with my training routine for another week before cutting back in the last week before I set off - yes I did listen to you Netty and no I am not overtraining!! The gym is open again, and last night I was able to go to Aqua Aerobics which I really enjoy. Thanks for lending me some free weights Andy, it was a great help when I couldn't use the gym. Must stop now as I have more thank you letters to write.

2009-04-20T09:25:00.005+01:00

Glorious weather all last week which has made training really enjoyable - yes I am using sun protection factor 25 Amy. This marvellous weather now can only mean that it is going to pour down on me between 14th - 19th May!!
Yesterday, in an idle moment, I decided to add up all the mileage I have done since Jan 1st 09 ( I haven't counted in the previous month yet when I had only just started training) and was amazed to find that so far, this year, I have walked 526.62 miles in training. With just over three weeks of training to go, and of course the walk itself, it means I will have walked over 800 miles by 19th May - hope my brothers appreciate that their sister is not quite past it yet!!! Perhaps they would like to get together and go one better - now there's a challenge to consider.
On a more serious note, there has been a hiccup on the gym/aqua class front. On Easter Monday a serious fire in part of the complex has caused the gym and pool to be closed for the past week. Hopefully, aqua classes will resume shortly but the gym won't be open until next weekend so I am doing hand weight routines at home. More later in the week, the sun is shining so I am off to walk.

2009-04-15T10:04:00.004+01:00

Pete and I have now finalised the route and I will be walking a total of 62.8 miles. The route is as shown below;
14th May - Altcar Training Camp Hightown to Southport - mostly A565 but detouring through Birkdale on the A5267 rejoining the A565 at Lulworth Road and walking along Lord Street.
15th May - Southport to Longton - A565 to Tarleton and then A59 to Longton.
16th May - Longton to Broughton - A59 to Preston joining A6 after town centre then detouring to Fulwood Barracks before rejoining the A6 and walking to Broughton.
17th May - Broughton to Great Eccleston - A6 to Kirkland Bridge and then left on the A586 to St Michaels on Wyre and then on to Gt Eccleston. ( This is a detour necessary to make up the mileage)
18th May - Great Eccleston to Forton via Garstang - mostly A6 but detouring into Garstang before rejoining the A6 at the Cockerham Road junction.
19th May - Forton to Alexandra Barracks at Lancaster - A6 to Lancaster, through the town centre and leaving Lancaster on Caton Road to arrive at the barracks at 1100.

2009-04-05T18:48:00.007+01:00

I've been in Suffolk for the last four days but I did do thirty four miles before I went away this week and have done another thirty whilst I was away, so as you can see, I am still working hard ... no slacking for the "footslogger".
In fact, Suffolk was really good for the training programme as the routes I walked on the country roads around the farm are quite undulating, so it made me work hard. Phew!!!
Just over six weeks to go now and I will be walking for six days in a row from now on, followed by two rest days, gym & aqua programmes will stay the same. I hope to have the B & B's finalised by the end of this week so it is all getting really exciting.
A big thank you to all those people who have already sponsored me, I really do appreciate it. There is still plenty of time to make a donation and it is so simple at my "justgiving" page, it only takes a few minutes and every single donation takes me nearer to my target. More next week, keep reading.

2009-03-27T22:37:00.003Z

This week has certainly been challenging, gone was the warm sunny weather I had last week and in its place I have had gale force winds, lashing rain and it has been absolutely freezing - back to winter again with a vengeance!!
However, I have done my ten miles each day since Monday and found out that my gortex jacket really is wind proof and waterproof. Today was still so windy that it was hard to stay upright and with the waist belt now at full walking weight - since it is stuffed with clothes and several free weights (couldn't get the bricks to fit DBB!) - it really was hard at times. At least if I get those conditions in May, I now know that I can cope with them.

2009-03-20T21:11:00.004Z

It is now only eight weeks until I start this walk in May and training is progressing well. Since the beginning of March I have been doing ten mile walks every day for four consecutive days and will up this to five consecutive ten mile walks from the beginning of April. Rest days are built into the schedule to allow for recovery.
I am training on a variety of different terrains from tarmac to sand as well as a semi rough area and since the weather has been very kind for the last two weeks, I am thoroughly enjoying it and feel confident thanks to all the people who are encouraging me.
I am continuing to do two aqua aerobic classes a week one with Netty and one with Linda and I really enjoy these but I am now only doing two gym sessions a week since the increased level of walking means it takes me about two and a half hours to cover ten miles. I am being careful to warm up and warm down correctly with plenty of stretching and Netty is on my case to make sure I don't overtrain - thanks for all the help Netty, it is much appreciated.

2009-03-16T21:45:00.005Z

Well, today is Monday and I'm back walking thank goodness. Thanks to expert advice from DBB, the blister is much improved so I am back on track. I don't think that zinc oxide plaster on the feet will ever catch on as a fashion statement - it is not a good look - but it has worked - ten miles today and no further problems.

Grounded!!!!!

2009-03-12T19:46:00.003Z

Today I'm grounded!!!

For the first time since training began in December, a huge blister has appeared - !!!!
Enforced rest is very hard - but I will be back in training this weekend. Watch this space.

Opening Blog

2009-03-09T22:05:00.001Z

It's official, I've put pen to paper...or finger to keyboard and started a blog to share my challenges whilst training for a charity fund raising event for Help for Heroes.

Help For Heroes has certainly fired the imagination of the public, just like me, to get out of their "Comfort Zone" and fund-raise for H4H. So I intend to do just that, and in so doing, show my support for our armed forces, and thank them for the great job they are doing.

I am far too wimpy to sky-dive, abseil, or row the Channel but to celebrate my 62nd birthday I intend to walk 62 miles, over 6 days from 14 - 19 May 2009. This will be a great personal challenge for me (With my bad foot, creaky knees and a damaged neck) but I am training hard & am determined to complete this walk. Hopefully, with your help, I will raise a lot of money for H4H and a the same time heighten public awareness of this great cause. Don't just take my word for it, look at the website and see for yourself what has already been achieved but also how much more is needed to ensure that our wounded get the best possible help and support to aid their recovery. Together we can make a difference!!!