Ian's 353km triathlon challenge
Posted on 9th January 2023
This Spring, Ian Jones is taking on a mammoth challenge to raise money for family bereavement charity Edward’s Trust, with a challenge every month from March through to July. Ian will be cycling 100km around Worcester in March, followed by a 50km trek in Windsor in April, 100km treks in Dorset in May and the Cotswolds in June, finished off with a 3km swim in Llanberis in July.
After completing a 100km trek in the Peak District last July, Ian was keen to up the ante this year. Although a keen cyclist and hiker, Ian is not much of a swimmer and says the 3km event may be the hardest of the challenge.
Ian says, “I really enjoyed the challenge of hiking 100km in 24 hours last year but thought I needed to increase the difficulty if I was going to ask for sponsorships. I decided to do two 100km treks, plus a 50km one to ‘warm up’. I regularly take part in the Mad March Hare, so we joked in the office about being almost a triathlon. Once the idea was raised, I couldn’t resist! It will certainly be a huge step up from last year’s challenge – especially for a man of 58 - so hopefully the amount raised will reflect that.”
Spencer Shaw Solicitors has supported Edward’s Trust since 2018. Ian says, “People are not keen to talk about loss, but bereavement is something that affects most of us at some point. Edward’s Trust is a fantastic charity that offers so much support throughout the West Midlands. We donate monthly as a company, but sponsored challenges like this are a great way to raise the profile of the charity too. By supporting one cause, rather than a different charity each year, we’ve had chance to get to know the cause, the staff, and even a lot of the ambassadors and volunteers who have been helped by the charity. It is incredibly rewarding to see the impact and know that our support helped in some way.”
Ian’s previous 100km trek took just under 23 hours and 45 minutes, and saw him shortlisted for Businessman of the Year at the Birmingham Awards partly in recognition of his fundraising efforts.
Edward's Trust supports bereaved children and families across the West Midlands, no matter the cause of loss. They offer counselling, wellbeing therapies play therapy, support groups, social activities and remembrance services. Visit Edward's Trust website to find out more, or see more stories of the families they have helped.
You can also support Ian and Edward's Trust by joining him in one or more of the challenges. Please contact laurarollason@spencershaw.co.uk for more information. Please also contact Laura if you are a corporate who would like to sponsor Ian, so that we can thank your business on our social media pages.
Tagged as: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Our team
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