A RETIRED Scottish teacher is starting his "Murrayfield to Malta for MND" challenge this weekend.
Chris Harvie, who formerly taught at Preston Lodge High School in Prestonpans is travelling from his home in Dukinfield near Manchester to the home of Scottish Rugby on Saturday.
The 67-year-old then aims to cycle from BT Murrayfield to Portsmouth, before sailing to Ouistreham in Northern France where he will be joined by a couple of friends who will accompany him for part of the way.
READ MORE: Repairs to the Boleside Road footbridge are underway
Chris will then cycle through Italy, Sicily and then over to Malta on the ferry.
He has a tent and sleeping bag and estimates that the journey will take six to eight weeks.
Chris said: “I intend to do a cycle from Murrayfield to Malta, setting off on Saturday 22nd April. My wee trip is called "Murrayfield to Malta for MND". I would like to raise funds for My Name'5 Doddie Foundation.
“The foundation is a charity committed to the raising of funds to fight Motor Neurone Disease. They help fund grants giving considerable sums to MND Association and MND Scotland.
“Some of the top sports people that have suffered or are suffering from this disease are Doddie Weir, Rob Burrows, Fernando Ricksen, Joost van der Westhuizen.
One of my favourite sports people and a friend and colleague, whom I know dedicated her life to introducing young people to sport in schools and gave up so much of her free time to do so, also developed Motor Neurone.
READ MORE: John Jeffrey to replace Bernard Laporte at World Rugby
“My lovely brother-in-law, Michael Burslam, who was not heavily into Sport but was as fit as a fiddle was taken with this disease. These are just some of the reasons I want to try and do my bit by raising funds.
“My friends and family think I am bonkers but are fully supportive.
Having had first hand experience of how this horrible disease can impact on a person and their family, I fully intend to "give it a go" with this wee challenge.
“I feel as fit as a fiddle and have done a wee bit training but however tough the challenge will be it’s nothing like the challenge that people with MND deal with daily.
“I realise there have been many very deserving causes this last year and therefore I would appreciate any donation to this cause.
“If you would like to sponsor me, keeping in mind, this will take from six to eight weeks to complete, there is plenty of time to do so. I will be doing this at a leisurely pace, enjoying the experience on the way.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here