Launchpad supporter, Gary Head, pushed his body to the limit by taking on the 26.2 mile Peak District Trek in September 2022, having undergone two hip replacements in 2015 and 2017– and has raised more than £2,000 to help prevent homelessness in Reading.
Gary – who lives in Caversham – has already completed the Reading Half Marathon in Autumn 2020, followed by Stoptober and Movember, and the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge and has raised a staggering amount for Launchpad to date. He completed his biggest challenge yet – taking on the peaks of Pen-y-ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough in under 12 hours in 2021. The challenge saw Gary and his colleagues from AXA complete 24 miles, which includes an ascent of 5,200 feet. The challenge was be a real test for Gary, who has not participated in a physical event of this level for a number of years, or since having his hip operations.
“In terms of big events, I’ve done the UK Three Peaks before – but that challenge was spread across three days and that was about ten years ago – and I’ve done five marathons and over 20 half marathons. But with my replacement hips I think my marathon days are well and truly over, and the Yorkshire Three Peaks was a real challenge for me physically.
“But I know that the body can do more than people think if you have the focus and mental strength to push on – so I am just hoping that the knees, hips and back hold up,” said Gary, who then completed the 26.2 mile Peak District Trek in September 2022 with his colleagues from Axa.
He trained hard before the event and said: “Giving back is a key focus for our team at AXA Commercial and 29 of us did the 26.2 mile trek with the odd hill chucked in for extra fun!!
“My knee held up crucially and all in all we had great fun both on the walk and in the youth hostel afterwards. Roll on next year!”
Gary says the driving force behind his fundraising efforts is supporting local people who are vulnerable, saying: ”It’s really difficult nowadays to make ends meet and sometimes people just need a bit of a helping hand to get them back onto the right path. I want to make a difference for my local community. What Launchpad do is so valuable and important. They support local people to work through their problems so they can pay their rent and their bills, and avoid ending up on the streets.”
You can donate to Gary by visiting his JustGiving page.