Henfield dad runs 50k ultra marathon in back garden for Horsham foodbank funds

On Saturday, April 4 – when the Centurion South Down Way 50 mile race was set to take place – Guy Hudson decided to do 1,000 laps of his 50m garden course instead.

He exceeded his intended distance as well as his fundraising target, which saw him raise more than £1,000 to support the Horsham District Foobank which is experiencing an unprecedented level of demand for help at this time.

Guy said: “Originally I was going to do this just for a personal challenge but it occurred to me that I may be missing a trick if I didn’t also try and raise much needed funds for a local cause.

“It was amazing how many messages of support and kindness I received during the event and as donations were coming in, my daughter was shouting out the total and reading the messages.

“As of April 6, we’ve raised £1,101.80, an amazing amount from 55 people, some of which I don’t even know!

“I am so pleased that the Horsham Community Food Bank will be able to immediately begin using these funds to share support and kindness within the community that I live.”

Guy set off at 8.30am and hit the half way mark in 2hrs38 and the marathon in 4hrs42.

As he went passed his £500 fundraising target before the end of the marathon, he decided to continue until he reached 1,000 laps, and finished the whole fundraiser in 5hrs31.

Guy’s wife, Jo, and son, Sonny, both ran 200 laps (10k) each, while daughter Kitty looked after the food, drink and high-five station.

Guy said: “To even out the wear and tear on my ankles, hips and glutes, I’d decided to change direction every 20 laps which worked out well but became a little confusing remembering in the later hours of the challenge, so I decided just to stick to running clockwise.

“At first it took a while to get into the rhythm of just plodding round and round but as time went on, so did the headphones and sun cream and i just switched off.

“One of the weirdest things was how it seemed to get easier the longer I was going and the second half was definitely somehow ‘easier’ than the first.”

The money that Guy has raised will directly support the Horsham District Foodbank during the coronavirus crisis, for which Horsham Matters has adapted their service in light of Government advice and now provides a doorstep, contact-free delivery of three days’ emergency food for those experiencing financial poverty or for complex households needing support.

Paula Daly, community fundraiser at Horsham Matters, said: “The Foodbank would generally provide food for around 250 residents a month and this figure has been surpassed in a two-week period and is fully expected to continue to increase.

“Horsham Matters is very grateful for Guy’s innovative and creative approach to raising money in order to help others in the community and he has showed us all that ‘charity begins at home’!”

To support Guy’s efforts, visit his JustGiving page https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/gettingdizzy to make a donation.

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