Challenge The Channel

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Very Best Wishes

Supporting Children and Teenagers with life threatening illnesses and people with breast cancer.

Paul's Training Update

Dear Friends

We hope this email update finds you well and enjoying the summer, at the time of writing it is cooler than when the last update was sent out.

Developments since the last update:

We are so pleased to announce that two companies have supported Paul’s training, firstly while we were at Cowes Week Paul approached Lendy P2P the main sponsor of the Cowes Week Regatta to ask if they would like to support his training and/or the Challenge the Channel event. We are delighted to say that the CEO Liam Brook has agreed a £200 donation towards training, Lendy P2P also donated £75 to the fundraising page, we look forward to receiving the donation.

On our return from Cowes Week we received more good news, another company (who wish to remain anonymous) have donated an astounding £2,000 towards the training costs so it goes without saying that Paul is overwhelmed by these very kind donations. We are sincerely grateful for the support from both companies as it will mean that we only have to find around £2,500 for the rest of training and £2,500 for the challenge on the day. The cost of training is for Mike Gilbert's time and the transport of the boat and support boat for the Bembridge to Needles endurance training row in September/October.

Radio interview:

Paul was delighted to be invited on to Radio Solent, Nick Girdler morning show on Sunday 22nd July, Nick is a very enthusiastic man, who’s show on a Sunday morning is one of the best shows we have listened to. Thank you Nick.

Kit:

Kit is sponsored by Alexandra Sport and is being made as we write, we don’t have a date for when this arrives but Paul is looking forward to wearing it, we sent out some images of what the kit design looks like a while ago.

Globaleather have sponsored Paul’s gloves and made a £300 donation to the justgiving page to which we are sincerely grateful, we received another 3 pairs of gloves this morning, thank you.

Training:

Training has been going well, Paul has completed 366 hours in the gym and on the Ergo (Rowing machine) and 11 hours on the water. Paul’s on-water coach is pleased with how Paul has progressed given it takes 2 years to learn to Scull properly, there are (I believe) some technical hurdles to overcome but with the progress Paul is making the Challenge is looking more and more achievable with only a short period of time spent on the water. Emma Gueterbock who is Paul’s technical coach in the gym and an experienced former Team GB rower has been coaching Paul techniques which has been a great help, Emma gives up her time for free and also rows with Paul on the rowing machines on a Friday morning.

Print donation:

Ingrid Abery, who is a renowned sailing photographer has donated 1 of 3 limited edition prints for auction to help raise funds towards Paul’s training, the prints are valued between £500-£650 we would like the bidding to start at £200 please. We can send you copies of the prints upon request.

Fundraising total to date:

The fund-raising total to date has risen to £1,121, thank you to those who have made donations.

Overview:

Training is going well both on the water and in the gym, we are still in search of sponsors for the event before we can go ahead and print the posters and promote the event. If anyone knows of any company that may wish to support this challenge please let us know. Clearsilver the PR company will be dealing with the promotion of the challenge but we will be sending out updates via email, on FB and twitter. Photos will be added to instagram and the blog page as and when we have.

Social Media Sites:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Many Thanks.

My Very Best Wishes

Paul

Paul A Smith OBE

M: 07796595432

Supporting Children and Teenagers with life threatening illnesses and people with breast cancer.

Dear Friends....

Dear Friends

Just a quick update reference Challenge the Channel.

On-water coach, Mike Gilbert has given me 6 days in which we can complete the marathon training session from Bembridge to the Needles all of which are subject to weather.

September 21st/22nd/23rd or 5th/6th/7th October 2018, after these dates we won’t have enough light, the row will take at least 4 hours the distance is 26 miles at least 3 miles longer than the channel crossing.

Last week was a rest week, so I took the opportunity to take in some sailing photography at Cowes Week onboard the media boat.

Events over the past week:

Whilst at Cowes my good friend Ingrid Abery who is a renowned Olympic and international yacht photographer has offered 3 limited edition prints for auction, all monies raised will go towards my on-water training, examples of the 3 prints to choose from at attached. The value of the prints are £500-£650 and a suggested starting point for bidding is £250, this is a win, win situation, you get a magnificent print of 16 x 24 inch I get to go on the water to continue my training, Your bid can be kept anonymous if you wish but most of all your kind support will be really appreciated.

Fundraising has now risen to around £1,056 which will help the Marjorie Anne Fund at the Breast Cancer Haven, our target is £250,000 to help the fund as Breast Cancer Haven receive no government funding so they rely heavily on fundraising to provide free support to those who have breast cancer or had an operation.

My training gloves have arrived courtesy of Globaleather, I will be trying them out in the gym on Monday.

Our search for a sponsor for training goes on.

Training:

It was hoped that I would get out on the water to row but unfortunately the only day was Thursday morning which I wasn’t able to attend.

Social Media Sites:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Many Thanks.

My Very Best Wishes

Paul

Paul A Smith OBE

M: 07796595432

Supporting Children and Teenagers with life threatening illnesses and people with breast cancer.

Challenge The Channel Update!

Dear Friends

We hope this update finds you well and explains what things have been quiet since the last update 13th June.

Since the last update a lot of things have happened including a search for a major sponsor, training both in the gym and on the water and most importantly we have news of a date change for the challenge plus another exciting development.

Since putting out a request for a major sponsor we have received a number of personal sponsorships to help the on-water training to continue, two personal friends have sponsored sessions with the latest sponsoring the last two sessions Tuesday 31st July and today Wednesday 1st August, I am indebted to you both for your kind support.

Alexandra Sports https://www.alexandrasports.com is sponsoring the kit which is being made by Godfrey Sports Ltd, the kit should be with me soon.

B and D engineering have offered sponsorship to help with on-water training, I sincerely thank you for your kind support.

Justin Miller who is a good friend sponsored the float stabilisers and some of the on-water training, we will be naming the floats after Marjorie Anne once we find a major sponsor, my sincere thanks to Justin for believing in me.

Ed Pont of Afia who have supported my challenges in the past with gloves has been in touch with an offer of a donation and support of the challenge you can see the gloves at www.globaleather.com your support is very welcome, I will be in touch shortly.

MAJOR SPONSOR(S) Requested

As a major sponsor you will have your name on the boat, exposure through social media and on publicity posters as well as on any communication and in the media. We can be contacted on details below.

Challenge date change: After a lengthy discussion with Mike Gilbert of Adventure Rowing and my tech coach, Emma Gueterbock I have taken their advice onboard and therefore there has been a change to the date of the challenge. As most of you know it was hoped that Challenge the Channel would be sometime in September 2018, the new date of Challenge the Channel with be Saturday 25th May 2019 to coincide with the passing of Marjorie Anne’s and will be weather dependant. I have to be guided by those who have much more experience than I do and as a novice I have no rowing knowledge whatsoever. The good news is that I will row a marathon as part of my training, the marathon row will be from Bembridge IOW to the Needles so all training is now geared towards this marathon sometime in September or when Mike advises.

Training: I am enjoying training in the gym and on the ergo and on the water, things have gone pretty well in both areas and there is still some way to go but I feel positive with the progress that has been made on the water in particular. My total hours of training in the gym/on the ergo are 360 hours and 9.5 hours on the water, how time flies when you’re having fun! I arrive at the gym between 7.45 and 8.15 every weekday morning which will probably increase as we progress and as my coaches see fit, on-water training is tide dependant and can be anytime during daylight hours.

The rising total on the just giving page has now reached £620, thank you to everyone who has kindly made those generous donations because without you we just couldn’t do it.

Part of my story: I was adopted at 6 months, once an adult I joined the Navy and at 32, I was involved in a horrific road traffic accident and subsequently I went into lock-in Syndrome for 12 years. A very unique experience and one that changed my life and those around me forever. I've been inspired to help others by taking on challenges and raising money for specific charities important to me. I was awarded the OBE for services to charity in 2016, a great privilege.

Now I’m raising funds for Breast Cancer Haven in memory of my good friend and huge inspiration in my life, Marjorie Anne Walker who passed away last year after fighting breast cancer. She was involved in setting up Portsmouth Breast Friends, a local support group for those effected by breast cancer. I want to give others a chance and support by rowing the channel with a hope of raising £250,000. I have paid for some of my on-water training to date but can no longer afford to so I’m in search of a major sponsor(s) who would like to see their name on the boat and support a great cause. Thank you for reading just a small part of my story. I'm happy to talk about my experiences and especially this new challenge.

Social Media Sites:

Many Thanks.

My Very Best Wishes

Paul

Paul A Smith OBE

M: 07796595432

Supporting Children and Teenagers with life threatening illnesses and people with breast cancer.

Supported by:

Getting out on the water

25th June 2018 - It is a relaxed training week this week and I’m already into the steady swing of things. Today I completed 3 x 5 pull ups for the first time in 26 years I’m really, really pleased with this even if I had to use the kneeling pad on light weights. Today I meet with Mike Gilbert to go through everything and get a date set for the challenge.

27th june 2018 - I trained today as I’m in a meeting tomorrow, this week is my easy week so it is allowing me to get in more weights albeit easy weights, my tech coach Emma may say I don’t know the meaning of taking it easy haha. This weather is hot hot hot but that’s great because it is heating these waters up around us so ideal conditions, long may it last! Have a great day, stay hydrated and safe everyone!

29th June 2018 - This week was my easy week as set by my tech coach Emma Gueterbock, giving my body a chance to recover especially in this heat! Today saw a Fartlek session a series of bursts introduced during a steady row, thoroughly enjoyed it. I have been told by Mike Gilbert that I will be going on the water next week, this is what I’ve been looking forward to for a long, long time. Looking forward to it, I may have some good news to share so watch this space!

4th July 2018 - Some rowing technique training with coach Emma Gueterbock

11th July 2018 - Today was training on water with Mike Gilbert of Langstone Adventure Rowers, did some capsize/recovery drills as well as learning to keep the boat stable.

13th July 2018 - It has been a busy if not a testing week, do I have doubts....apprehension is more like it but next week I will be sculling with stabilisers on the outriggers which I am sure will make life easier.
I have never sculled before and swimming is difficult for me because of my own circumstances! This challenge is going to test me to the limits there’s no doubting that but with Emma Gueterbock as my tech coach and with Mike Gilbert as my on-water coach I feel I’m in good hands.
Last nights news has spurred me on to conquer this one for one very special friend that I knew for a long while and for a new friend who told me that she also has breast cancer for the fourth time. So there you go, if these are not good enough reasons to make every effort to succeed I don’t know what are.

17th July 2018 - Another on the water training session but this time with stabilisers attached to the boat, this made it easier to travel further out into the sea during training.

Until next time.....Paul.

Social Media links:

My Very Best Wishes.

Paul

Paul A Smith OBE

Charity Fundraiser for sick Children, Teenagers and breast cancer sufferers.

Tel: 02392 383515

M: 07796595432

All Systems go.....

An update on Training and sponsorship...

12th May 2018 - A different week of training due to the bank holiday weekend etc, we are still working hard to find a sponsor/sponsors for training which requires a safety boat at all times and for the challenge itself. If there are any companies or individuals who would like to help us get on the water please get in touch.

The good news is that we have people wanting to donate to the challenge, a justgiving page will be setup once we have secured a sponsor/sponsors. Training in the gym is going well, the support we have is amazing.

14th May 2018 - Pictures from today's training session.

17th May 2018 - Today was an excellent session, one of the best I have had since I started training for this challenge. For the first time I lifted heavy weights and I’m up to 55kg bench press but I’m confident that I can push a lot more so it’s all positive.

18th May 2018 - New technical session today with Emma Gueterbock, really enjoyed the weeks training lifting my heaviest weights for a long time felt really good, I’m back, I really am back!!

4th June 2018 - Today I was handed a £200 cheque by a lady, so there’s no turning back now....let training on the water commence.

12th June 2018 - Some readouts from today's training.

15th June 2018 - It has been a much better week in the gym on the rower and weights, the technical session on Friday morning with Emma Gueterbock was particularly good, I’m learning so much and Emma says I’ve progressed very well since March. Can’t wait to get on the water but desperately need a sponsor or sponsors to cover the training and the challenge.

I still have to find a sponsor/Sponsorship of some training and the main event approx £5000, this is not a definite figure we hope it will be less. If you can help then please get in touch.

Social Media links: