40-year-old Tom Vincent from Oakley, near Oxford has completed an epic 496-mile fundraising running challenge for Alzheimer’s Society.
The CEO of a professional training services organisation and father-of-two is no stranger to endurance events, having previously completed Ironman triathlons and a multistage marathon race across the Sahara Desert, the Marathon des Sables.
But his latest venture, which he describes as the hardest of them all, was on home soil. A colleague suggested he complete a running challenge in January, which would see him running the equivalent miles for each day that month. The first day of January would see him run just one mile, but by the end of the month, he would be running 31 miles, having previously run 30 miles the day before.
Tom decided to support Alzheimer’s Society as it was his company’s chosen charity of the year. His grandmother also had dementia, and Tom witnessed how difficult it was seeing her lose her independence and become increasingly confused.
The accumulative challenge saw Tom complete a staggering 496 miles over the 31 days of January in the running challenge for Alzheimer’s Society.
If that wasn’t a big enough challenge, Tom set himself the goal of completing each run before his children left for school, which saw him setting off at 3am or 4am to get the miles in.
Tom said: “It started quite easily, but it quickly got to the point where it was a challenge logistically and physically. I had to travel to Edinburgh for work on 09 January with my flight leaving at 8.00am. As a result, I had to get up at 3.00am and run nine miles before heading to the airport.
“As the dates got to the late teens, the mental side kicked in, where I was already fatigued, having to get up early and knew that I had 10+ days of serious distance still to go.
“On day 22, I felt particularly low. It took all of my effort to get out of the front door at 4.00am and run. Once I completed that day, I was able to focus on the day ahead and take it day by day.
“The last five days were the hardest of them all. I had multiple injuries (Achilles, knee, thigh) and was struggling to walk up and down stairs. Starting to run each morning was painful and it took about 10 miles for my legs to warm up and things to hurt a little less. Each day however, I just focussed on putting one foot in front of the other and gradually ticked the miles and days off.”
Being January, the weather wasn’t the kindest, and Tom had to endure two storms as well as a period of three days where the temperature dropped to -10 degrees. He ran 90% or more during the dark, and all together, these conditions added to what was already a difficult challenge.
With the support of his friends and family, some of whom joined him at ridiculous times in the middle of the night to run alongside him, Tom completed his challenge.
“My wife and young children initially thought I was mad to even be considering this challenge,” Tom adds: “especially when we worked out the total distance of 496 miles in the month. They have been used to me taking on challenges, but the length of this particular one meant I was missing every morning for the last 10+ days. I was always trying to get back just before the children went to school at 8.00am which I managed every day.”
Both Tom and his colleagues had initially set a fundraising target of £1,500, but they have now exceeded that goal by raising an incredible £2,780. Donations can still be made via their JustGiving page.
Tom said: “I couldn’t be prouder of my colleagues who have done so much over the past the year to raise money and awareness for such an amazing charity.”
Tom is recovering from a stress fracture in his femur as a result of the challenge and is focusing on rest and recovery before embarking on his next event.
Alzheimer’s Society Community Fundraiser Siobhan Marsh praised Tom’s decision to raise money for the charity. She said: “Not every challenge is as mentally and physically draining as Tom’s. He has certainly been put through his paces. We are so grateful that Tom and all his colleagues at 20/20 Business Insight Limited gave their time and energy to support Alzheimer’s Society.
“Dementia is the UK’s biggest killer. One in three people born in the UK today will develop dementia in their lifetime. Each hour people generously give to fundraise for us, every event they take part in, every pound they donate, they’re making a life-changing difference to people living with dementia.
“Alzheimer’s Society provides vital support to people living with dementia, funds groundbreaking research and campaigns to make dementia the priority it should be. Together, we will end the devastation caused by dementia.”
Whoever you are, whatever you are going through, you can turn to Alzheimer’s Society for support, help and advice. Visit the Alzheimer’s Society website for more information.
