COOKHAM 'WOLFPACK' WILL BE RUNNING (HOPEFULLY NOT HOWLING) IN THE WOODS THIS WEEKEND

This weekend, 12 Cookham runners will be undertaking the Wolfpack London-Cardiff 24-Hour Team Relay Challenge. It is a 160-mile race from Twickenham Stadium to the Millennium Stadium.

The volunteers, mainly from Cookham Running Club, will be helped along the way on this venture by a support team of four, plus three vehicles and two bicycles. They will attempt to complete the challenge in less than 24 hours, using navigation and strategy skills, and testing their endurance levels.

‘We’re all very excited about this challenge,’ says Team Captain Gerald Cooper. ‘We have been planning it for some time now. It is a tough course, especially as quite a lot of the route is off-road and will be run during the hours of darknes, when we will be suffering from sleep deprivation. We are all looking forward to the after-party in the Millennium Stadium, though. This should be a great adventure and the team are looking forward to reliving it all again with the rest of the club members on their return.’

Cookham mum Sarah Parfitt has been practising one of her legs in Malmsbury, Wiltshire, close to her family home, while the rest of the team have been busy running and cycling some of the route throughout the Thames Valley. I caught up with some of the team members to find out why they got involved and how they're feeling about the race.

Sarah Parfitt says: ‘One of the legs is "a spooky night run through a wood at 2am" - strangely enough, there weren't too many volunteers for that one! The aim is just to finish the race within the time limit, so that we can make the party. I am already looking forward to a pint of shandy or two!’

Steve Woodward adds: ‘Work challenges need replacing after retirement, and the stimulus I found in running with Cookham gave me an uncontrollable urge to indulge in this bit of madness and raise money for Prostate Cancer UK (£700 so far... ).'

Ibet Allan says: ‘I am a runner and even though I enjoy training and doing individual races, one aspect about the sport I love is supporting other runners – we understand how much effort, time and commitment the sport takes and that creates a bond between us. In a team event, everyone joins in one goal and shares the load as well as the glory! I feel confident about the running part but I'm pretty apprehensive about the navigation - if the team rely on me to read the compass, we'll end up in the Midlands next June!’

Helen Krag says: ‘I don't want to be the numpty that gets lost and lets the team down either! Secondary to that is the inevitable lack of sleep, and I shall be doing my best to keep any ensuing grumpiness to a minimum in the minibus! That said, we have a fantastic inclusive and supportive team, so I'm sure it will be enjoyable!’

And finally, team member Tim Courtenay sums up what it’s all about. ‘For me, the attraction was that it’s a challenge. But you also meet new friends who must be as mad as you, since they’ve also signed up to do it – so it might just be fun,’ he says. ‘One way to get the most out of life is to look upon it as an adventure. This, very much, falls into that category!’

We wish the Cookham ‘wolfpack’ the best of luck for the weekend and can’t wait to hear all about it.

Keep track of their progress on the MumsaboutCookham Facebook page on Saturday.

www.wolfpackrunning.com

www.cookhamrunningclub.com

Pic: Some of the Cookham Running Club are taking part in the Wolfpack Relay Challenge