A Little Quest

www.justgiving.com/A-Little-Quest

www.twitter.com/A_Little_Quest

“A Little Quest” is a coast-to-coast running event, which aims to raise as much money for Brain Tumour UK as possible. It will consist of six consecutive days of approximately 30 miles running per day.

On Monday 31 May 2010, I will start with my left foot in the sea on the east coast of England at Shoeburyness, near Southend-on-Sea, Essex. The finish of “A Little Quest” will be approximately 180 miles west of the start, on the seafront at Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset on Saturday 5 June 2010 when my left foot touches the sea.

Over the next few weeks, I will be updating the website with details of fundraising events and training runs and the all important running route for each day of "A Little Quest". An overview of the planned route for the entire journey (courtesy of Google Maps) can be accessed using the link below. If there are any discrepencies between the route overview and the route for a particular day, the day route takes precedence.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=51.531574,+0.802839&daddr=51.346483,-2.983217&hl=en&geocode=FTZPEgMdF0AMAA%3BFTN8DwMdz3rS_w&mra=ls&dirflg=w&sll=51.335974,-2.968025&sspn=0.052229,0.110035&ie=UTF8&ll=51.511093,0.364265&spn=0.104058,0.22007&t=h&z=12

Why?

I have created “A Little Quest” because I want to help in the fight against brain tumours. In June last year my girlfriend’s uncle – a funny, charismatic, intelligent friend- was diagnosed with a brain tumour. A week later, he had surgery to remove 95% of a grade 4 glioblastoma from his left frontal lobe and he has since undergone treatments of radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The speed with which a brain tumour can develop and the affects it can have on an individual’s mental and physical state is devastating for the person concerned and their loved ones. If it wasn’t for spilt spaghetti and unusual conversation over lunch one Saturday in June, my girlfriend’s uncle may not even have been persuaded to go to the local A&E for a check up.

Since June last year, I have realised how little knowledge people have of brain tumours and the vast range of tumour types despite the fact that it seems more and more people are battling against the disease. I still know very little about tumours but I have learnt how traumatic they are for the individual concerned and their friends and family.

How can you help?

“A Little Quest” is a tribute to everybody who has fought against brain tumours. You can contribute to “A Little Quest” in two ways:

(1) please sponsor “A Little Quest” by visiting the “A Little Quest” justgiving page. There is a link to the website at the top of this post and one can also be found in the Links section of this website. I have never attempted such an extreme challenge as "A Little Quest" before but am hoping that the enormity of the challenge will help to raise an enormous amount for Brain Tumour UK. Your contribution, would be greatly appreciated;

(2) please feel free to join me on “A Little Quest” and help me to raise as much money for Brain Tumour UK as possible. You can join me for as much or as little of the journey as you like (it's going to be a lonely week by myself!). If you are interested in taking part in "A Little Quest" please either post a message on the website or email me at c_r_duff@msn.com.

Brain Tumour UK

Founded in 1997, this is an amazing charity. It is not as well known, or as well funded, as charities like Cancer Research or Macmillan but it is the leading charity committed to fighting brain tumours. For more information about the charity and the work that it does, please visit the Brain Tumour UK website - a link to it can be found in the Links section of this website.