Northumberland Coast Mighty Hike Full Marathon

I am pleased to be taking part in my first Macmillan

Mighty Hike.

The MacMillan charity continues to make vital

contributions to the care and well-being of those with

cancer. It offers help and support on practical issues

and contributes greatly to the emotional support of

those with cancer. Even small acts of kindness; holding

hands, a comforting smile and having a chat, are so

important. By offering such emotional support,

Macmillan therefore also helps family and friends of

those diagnosed with cancer.

Our family has experienced the loss of a dear family

member, my sister-in-law, Katey Abou-El-Karam (nee

Avis) who passed away far too young from breast

cancer. Macmillan supported Katey and her close

family members throughout her illness. We will always

be grateful to Macmillan for that support and care

during the darkest of times. Katey’s early cancer was

likely to be genetically-linked and an additional goal in

taking part in this event is to raise awareness of the

increasing knowledge of genes that can be linked to

common cancers.

***Update Sunday 6th September
I completed my first MacMillan Mighty Hike in 9hrs 2 minutes, around 3 mph average. Thank you to all of you that donated to this great cause and I am very pleased to have completed the course. It was a great day with around 2800 people taking part using staggered start times. The organisation was superb; we had a warm-up routine, safety marshalls for crossing roadsides, and food and drinks were provided, including regular water fills. Overall, l would highly recommend taking part, this particular Mighty Hike benefits from a beautiful and largely flat route following the coast. I was pleasantly surprised about the time. There were two factors that helped; firstly although non-competitive, there are always people moving quicker and passing you (they may have had a 30 minute lunch break, you don't know) but that helps you keep your pace up. Secondly, there were two fellow Mighty Hikers that were streaming classic 80s hits on the hard miles between Seahouses and Bamburgh...Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran etc.....it definitely helps!

David