3 days ago
Two stroke survivors taking on 24-hour three peaks challenge
Two East Lancashire men, who have both suffered strokes, have made the 'bonkers' decision to take on the Three Peaks challenge after a brief conversation over dinner.
Andrew Wilson, from Clayton-le-Moors and Paul Wood, from Blackburn, have set themselves the task of climbing all three of Great Britain's tallest mountains in less than 24 hours to help fund a local cadet group.
They aim to raise £2,000 for Accrington Air Cadets to help fund a trip to Poland for the young people who use the service.
Andrew said: 'The youth deserve to have a trip that is going to teach them about why we don't forget the atrocities of the past, because if we don't remember it, it will be impossible to sort our future out.
'They said they would all like to go to Auschwitz and pay their respects.'
Having volunteered at the youth group for 12 months, Andrew was inspired by the work that was done there and the major benefits it had for young people in the community.
During the mammoth challenge, the pair are planning to drive themselves and expect to only have a 10-minute break to stretch on their route as they ascend Scotland's Ben Nevis, England's Scafell Pike, and Wales' Mount Snowdon.
Andrew added: 'We have done no training. We are typically blokes from the North West of England, thinking, ah, we can do that.
"We are doing our first training sessions next weekend and starting at Pendle Hill.
'Most people go with the Three Peaks challenge, and then they do all the driving.
"Because we don't want to take away from the cadets, we are not doing it that way, we are driving ourselves.'
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Andrew has suffered two transient ischemic attacks, often referred to as a 'mini stroke', whilst Paul has suffered one.
All funds raised will be used to reduce the cost of the trip, with some young people in the cadets unable to cover the £900 cost for the trip.
The pair will be live-streaming the event on the Accrington Cadets' Facebook page and regularly updating people in WhatsApp groups.
Donations can be made to the group's GoFundMe page or dropped off at the air cadets' base in Harvey Street, Oswaldtwistle, between 7.30 and 9.30pm on Tuesdays.
