Andrew Johnson

I served so I want to raise funds to support ex-military and their families.

WWTW have helped me and other veteran friends in the past, so I wanted to challenge myself to raise awareness and funds.

I have never ran a marathon before and it’s been on my bucket list for a longtime. In 2016, I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in both knees which has prevented me to run, which was one of my favourite forms of exercise for my wellbeing. With some lifestyle changes, I am now able to run but I’ve only ran short distances.

In October I came up with an idea of walking from Newcastle to my hometown in Ripon, North Yorkshire. Having trained for two months, I decided to run most of it with twist. I wanted people to join me and keep me company. I’ve broke up the challenge in two legs. Leg one Newcastle to Piercebridge, 34 miles. Leg two, Piercebridge to Ripon 34 miles. Total distance, 68 miles and I would like to do it under 15 hours.

UPDATE: I am happy to say I ran most of the 68 miles solo and in 13.5 hours. I want to say a huge thank you to my wife who provided life support throughout. I would also like to say a huge thank you to my colleagues and friends who walked and ran with me over the two days. What is even more amazing is we doubled my target. So a huge thank you to all that donated.