Fit For The Planet Part 1 - 5K Run At Chasewater Completed

This year, I set myself a little goal of making exercise my friend and raising money for Friends of the Earth at the same time.

Phase One of (ahem) Fit For The Planet swung into operation this Easter Sunday morning with a five-kilometre run around Chasewater reservoir - the Easter Egg 5K. It wasn't a long run, but given my long-standing aversion to exercise I had to start somewhere. :)

Here I am before the start representing that little known but important charity Friends Of The Ear...

And crossing the line around 34 minutes later...

And afterwards with my medal (complimentary creme egg not shown).

I'd set the modest target of raising £100, and was very pleasantly surprised to have raised £135 plus Gift Aid.

A big thanks to all family, friends and fellow-activists who supported my run today by making a donation (listed here). Knowing you had backed me really helped me keep going - I surprised myself with how quickly I got round the course. And I didn't stop to walk at all. Well - almost not at all - there were hills. :)

If you'd like to make a post-run donation, you can do so here. 

Why am I fundraising for Friends of the Earth?

As anyone who knows me will be unsurprised to hear, I'm passionate about the environment. I've stood on the English moors, by the Mediterranean coast and in the Yosemite Valley in California and experienced their wonder and uniqueness. We can't take it for granted. 

Since I finished working for Friends Of The Earth last summer, I've been looking for a way to continue contributing to the environmental movement that feels right for me. Fundraising feels like it's part of the solution.

And I know that the more money we can find for organisations like Friends of the Earth, the faster we can keep moving into a modern, green and above all hopeful future. Those politicians won't take the right decisions all by themselves, you know.

Ultimately, it'd be marvellous to have a small group of fundraisers in Lichfield to do fun things together, but one step at a time. 

And if anyone's wondering when I'll do a run for the Motor Neurone Disease Association - it's in the pipeline. I'm just looking for the right opportunity. :)