A MAN from the Bradford district is on the home stretch of his epic running challenge to raise money for two charities close to his heart.
David Slater, 45 from Bingley, has run 10k every day this year to raise money for Candlelighters and Papyrus.
The two charities have impacted David’s life, with his best friend losing his daughter to cancer and, losing a friend over 20 years ago to suicide.
He said: “I’m a keen runner and mountaineer and I wanted to do something related.
“These are charities that do so much, and they rely on donations as they don’t get Government funding.
“The initial challenge was trying to fit it into my schedule.”
So far, David has taken on 243 runs through the cold and dark winter days, the summer of rain, and the late heatwave.
He said: “It was a lot of dark runs and then three weeks into it, I got shin splints which I’ve never had before and I was advised to rest for three weeks, but I couldn’t do that so I did some exercises and then thankfully I’ve been running injury free.
“It was painful but it’s nothing compared to how these children going through chemotherapy are feeling or a family member who has lost someone to suicide.
“It’s definitely toughened me up a little bit.”
David's 243 runs have included prominent people from across the district and beyond, including former Bradford City player Joe Colbeck and Leeds boxer Jack Bateson.
He added: “I’ve been going on lunch runs and some of my colleagues have joined me on them, it’s been great. If I’m by myself, I usually just put my earphones in but if there’s someone with me, I love a good chat.”
David’s fastest 10k so far has been in 44 minutes and his longest 58 minutes.
He has taken on his challenge across the UK and abroad, with runs in France and Holland.
“I’m just short of £5,000 and that’s without much promotion but with there being just over 100 runs left, I want to raise as much money as possible and give it a little push," he said.
“A lot of strangers who have seen me running have messaged me and shown an interest in what I’m doing.
“I’ve got a shirt that I’ve made that’s got the sponsors on it and a bit about what I’m doing and we’ve had a really positive response.
“They are really important charities, and they need us to do this for them, we’ve seen the chances of surviving childhood cancer increase and that’s because of the research and the treatment.
“The only way we can support them is by fundraising for them."
You can donate via David's website: 1dadrunning.co.uk and follow his journey on his instagram @1dadrunning
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