Good friends of Zool, Ian and Stuart have been regular fundraisers for various Alzheimer’s charities for a long time as they have both lost close family members to the disease. Between them, they had already undertaken 10K runs, half marathons, marathons and a very painful back waxing – and they felt it was time for something a little different.
After some thought, Ian came up with the great idea to walk between the shortest pier in the UK – Wigan Pier – and the longest – Southend (his old home town.) Stuart loved the idea and offered to accompany him.
Ian’s ‘Pier 2 Pier’ brainchild came to fruition on 10th May 2018, when Stuart and Ian set off on a 240-mile walk over the course of 10 days with the aim of raising £. We offered them social media and PR support throughout the build up and for the actual walk itself. This is the story of how they did it.
30 September 2017: Training in the Lake District
Stuart did a 13-mile hike yesterday and then trekked up Kinder today, while Ian did a 17.3-mile walk to Lymn and back:
6 October 2017: Printed T-shirts for Manchester Half Marathon
Cooper Sports in Sale were kind enough to print a couple of Alzheimer’s T-shirts for Ian and Stuart to wear while undertaking the Manchester Half Marathon:
15th September 2017: Manchester Half Marathon
After just ten days training, Ian and Stuart both ran the Manchester Half Marathon – they had a great day, met some really nice people and had some fun (honest)!
12 November 2017 – Training in the Peak District
Ian and Stuart had a great morning walking in the Peak District, making the summit of Mam Tor and they also ended up getting their picture into the Daily Mail as well:
8 January 2018: Treadmill Walk, Sainsbury’s, Sale
In a bid to kickstart their fundraising campaign, Ian and Stuart walked on treadmill’s in Sainsbury’s, Curzon Road, Sale from 8 am to 5.30pm. They would like to say a huge thank you to Sports Direct Fitness in Sale for the use of their treadmills.
21 January 2018: Training Walk, Chinley Churn
15 mile walk in the snow to the top of Chinley Churn:
7 April 2018: Manchester Marathon
Ian undertook the Manchester Marathon in aid of Alzheimer’s Society – he managed to complete it in 4 hours and 42 minutes.
9 May – The Night Before:
10 May: Day One – Wigan Pier to Knutsford via Warrington (24 Miles)
Ian and Stuart had a great start to their walk, with perfect weather and lots of generous and friendly people along the way. By the end of Day One, they had already achieved donations of £3500.
11 May: Day Two – Knutsford to Newcastle-under-Lyme (25 Miles)
Ian and Stuart found it a bit tougher going today, with lots of aches and pains slowing them down slightly. The welcoming and generous people they met along the way really helped them to keep going though and they even managed to collect £150 along the way.
12 May: Day Three Newcastle-under-Lyme to Lichfield (29 miles)
One of the longest stretches on the trip, although 16 miles of it was along the wonderful Trent Mersey Canal, and the lads took the opportunity to stop off at Canalside Farm for a breather. They also managed to collect £160 along the way, bringing the total donated so far to £4455.
13 May: Day Four – Lichfield to Nuneaton ( 22 miles)
A sore start to the day with both Ian and Stuart suffering from aches and pains, which led to them making the decision to change the route from a 28-mile stroll along the canal to a less scenic 22 miles – which involved a few hours walking along the A5! A very hot afternoon ensued, but it was made all the better by a nice cold beer at the end.
14 May: Day Five – Nuneaton to Northampton (22 miles)
An exciting day for the lads as at some point during the day they will hit the halfway point – 115 miles done and 115 miles to go! They met some great people on this stretch, including a cyclist who had no money on him but came back and found them an hour later in order to donate.
15 May: Day Six – Northampton to Bedford (22 Miles)
A very hot day where lots of sun cream was applied and much water was taken on board!
16 May: Day Seven – Bedford to Stevenage
17 May: Day Eight – Stevenage to Harlow
The lads had a confusing start to the day trying to negotiate the Stevenage underpasses, but they sound found their way and even ended up walking a few miles by the canal. Near the end of the day, they crossed over into Essex, the destination county which meant they were within 50 miles of Southend Pier – so this was definitely a cause for celebration!
18 May: Day Nine – Harlow to Chelmsford
The lads were so close now, they could almost smell the sea air!
19 May: Day 10 (Last Day) – Chelmsford to Southend Pier
Ian and Stuart made it to the finish line. Well, they passed it actually, as they felt they couldn’t walk all that way and not go to the end of the pier!
With sore feet and tired eyes, Ian and Stuart came to the end of their epic 10 days walk from Wigan Pier to Southend Pier. What a journey it was. They did, however, manage to raise an epic £8,170 for the Alzheimers Society – we are so proud of them. Well done lads…..now what’s next?
Zool Support Pier 2 Pier Walk in Aid of Alzheimer’s Charity
News / May 20, 2018
Good friends of Zool, Ian and Stuart have been regular fundraisers for various Alzheimer’s charities for a long time as they have both lost close family members to the disease. Between them, they had already undertaken 10K runs, half marathons, marathons and a very painful back waxing – and they felt it was time for something a little different.
After some thought, Ian came up with the great idea to walk between the shortest pier in the UK – Wigan Pier – and the longest – Southend (his old home town.) Stuart loved the idea and offered to accompany him.
Ian’s ‘Pier 2 Pier’ brainchild came to fruition on 10th May 2018, when Stuart and Ian set off on a 240-mile walk over the course of 10 days with the aim of raising £. We offered them social media and PR support throughout the build up and for the actual walk itself. This is the story of how they did it.
30 September 2017: Training in the Lake District
Stuart did a 13-mile hike yesterday and then trekked up Kinder today, while Ian did a 17.3-mile walk to Lymn and back:
6 October 2017: Printed T-shirts for Manchester Half Marathon
Cooper Sports in Sale were kind enough to print a couple of Alzheimer’s T-shirts for Ian and Stuart to wear while undertaking the Manchester Half Marathon:
15th September 2017: Manchester Half Marathon
After just ten days training, Ian and Stuart both ran the Manchester Half Marathon – they had a great day, met some really nice people and had some fun (honest)!
12 November 2017 – Training in the Peak District
Ian and Stuart had a great morning walking in the Peak District, making the summit of Mam Tor and they also ended up getting their picture into the Daily Mail as well:
8 January 2018: Treadmill Walk, Sainsbury’s, Sale
In a bid to kickstart their fundraising campaign, Ian and Stuart walked on treadmill’s in Sainsbury’s, Curzon Road, Sale from 8 am to 5.30pm. They would like to say a huge thank you to Sports Direct Fitness in Sale for the use of their treadmills.
21 January 2018: Training Walk, Chinley Churn
15 mile walk in the snow to the top of Chinley Churn:
7 April 2018: Manchester Marathon
Ian undertook the Manchester Marathon in aid of Alzheimer’s Society – he managed to complete it in 4 hours and 42 minutes.
9 May – The Night Before:
10 May: Day One – Wigan Pier to Knutsford via Warrington (24 Miles)
Ian and Stuart had a great start to their walk, with perfect weather and lots of generous and friendly people along the way. By the end of Day One, they had already achieved donations of £3500.
11 May: Day Two – Knutsford to Newcastle-under-Lyme (25 Miles)
Ian and Stuart found it a bit tougher going today, with lots of aches and pains slowing them down slightly. The welcoming and generous people they met along the way really helped them to keep going though and they even managed to collect £150 along the way.
12 May: Day Three Newcastle-under-Lyme to Lichfield (29 miles)
One of the longest stretches on the trip, although 16 miles of it was along the wonderful Trent Mersey Canal, and the lads took the opportunity to stop off at Canalside Farm for a breather. They also managed to collect £160 along the way, bringing the total donated so far to £4455.
13 May: Day Four – Lichfield to Nuneaton ( 22 miles)
A sore start to the day with both Ian and Stuart suffering from aches and pains, which led to them making the decision to change the route from a 28-mile stroll along the canal to a less scenic 22 miles – which involved a few hours walking along the A5! A very hot afternoon ensued, but it was made all the better by a nice cold beer at the end.
14 May: Day Five – Nuneaton to Northampton (22 miles)
An exciting day for the lads as at some point during the day they will hit the halfway point – 115 miles done and 115 miles to go! They met some great people on this stretch, including a cyclist who had no money on him but came back and found them an hour later in order to donate.
15 May: Day Six – Northampton to Bedford (22 Miles)
A very hot day where lots of sun cream was applied and much water was taken on board!
16 May: Day Seven – Bedford to Stevenage
17 May: Day Eight – Stevenage to Harlow
The lads had a confusing start to the day trying to negotiate the Stevenage underpasses, but they sound found their way and even ended up walking a few miles by the canal. Near the end of the day, they crossed over into Essex, the destination county which meant they were within 50 miles of Southend Pier – so this was definitely a cause for celebration!
18 May: Day Nine – Harlow to Chelmsford
The lads were so close now, they could almost smell the sea air!
19 May: Day 10 (Last Day) – Chelmsford to Southend Pier
Ian and Stuart made it to the finish line. Well, they passed it actually, as they felt they couldn’t walk all that way and not go to the end of the pier!
With sore feet and tired eyes, Ian and Stuart came to the end of their epic 10 days walk from Wigan Pier to Southend Pier. What a journey it was. They did, however, manage to raise an epic £8,170 for the Alzheimers Society – we are so proud of them. Well done lads…..now what’s next?
