How I got involved in triathlon.
On the 28th of December 2014, we lost another amazing soul from this planet, in Emily Thackray.
In September 2016, I was out doing an early morning swim and it had thinking about my friend Emily and I recalled one of our first conversations when I joined her at the charity Live Life then Give Life. When she asked what I’d be up for in fundraising I remember to this day, saying pretty much anything, but I categorically would not do any form of runs or bike rides or skydives.
Following my swim, a friend of mine (my TriPal) text me asking if I wanted to do the Brighton & Hove Triathlon, it had just been announced for its innagural year… Without Em even being around to pester me into doing it, she somehow got me a message that I should give it a go…so that was it, I signed up!
I haven’t owned a bike in over 15 years and have not run since school (some long long long time ago). I swim a fair bit…but the rest of it scares me still!
I then wanted to do something for the people that looked after Emily and after speaking to her lovely family, decided it would be most fitting to raise funds for Harefield hospital, who throughout her short life had saved her countless times. I visited Emily a couple of times in that hospital and they were always so amazing to her, though that might of been because they knew that really, she was the boss of the ward! Either way, they were incredible people.
I set out to raise as much as I could to help Harefield with funds going towards projects that could help save countless more lives and as it turned out, I managed to raise around £4,000! That…and it got me hooked into triathlon!