Run Dobie Run :: London to Scotland - August 2009

At 10:55am on Wednesday 2nd September 2009, Andrew Dobie completed his 350 mile run from home town Harpenden in Hertfordshire to Edinburgh in Scotland. This huge acheivement took just 24 days.

Donations have been flying in over the past few days and whilst it is not official yet, we believe Andrew has easily passed the £5000 target which will be split between The Stroke Association and Action for Children; two charities very close to Andrew’s heart.

Congratulations from everyone involved go to Andrew and a massive thank you to everyone who has supported him in this epic journey.

8:00am on Wednesday 2nd September 2009.  Andrew has just woken up to presents and a greeting card from all his friends and family to celebrate his 27th birthday.  With only 10kM to go until reaching the finish line in Edinburgh at 11:00am this morning, Andrew has got a huge smile on his face!!!

A big thank you to everyone who sent in their best wishes:

Andrew is currently running the 2nd leg of the penultimate day. He set off from just outside Oxton at 2pm and should be arriving in Pathhead any time now. Only one more 10 kM run to complete today, taking him into the picturesque town of Dalkeith on the outskirts of Edinburgh.

Tomorrow Andrew will see the end of this epic journey as he arrives at Edinburgh Castle at ~11:00am. I’m sure Andrew would like to thank everyone who has supported him on the run and we are so close to meeting his £5k budget - just a few more donations will take us over the top…

It’s going to be a tough day for Andrew!  The heavens have opened and we are experiencing the worst weather yet.  Andrew has set off for his first run of the day and he will certainly need a cuppa tea when he finishes this leg!

Yesterday afternoon we found ourselves in a layby, no where near a town to fundraise, watching the rain pour down the windows of the camper van.  Now some would say that this would have been a good opportunity to catch up on a bit of well needed rest…but not Andrew.  Instead, with a little arm twisting from Jenny and Kate, he agreed to film what can only be described as a Run Dobie Run masterpiece.  This musical number has singing, dancing and nudity - something for all the family!

Now you are probably scanning the rest of this news item for a video link to YouTube…well you can stop right there as it’s not been made live yet and there is good reason.  For andrew to allow the broadcast of this video to the worldwide web, he would like something in return.  Between now and the end of the run (2nd September 09), at least 30 people must donate via the “Click to donate” button at the top of this page.  Donations can be as low as a pound and please be as generous as you can afford - the video is certainly worth it and the money is going to two great charities!  For those who are still unsure, there will be a sneak preview in tonights video (Day 16).

So get donating people and lets reveal Andrew in all his glory to the world!

Andrew was kindly donated many gifts by many companies, groups and oranisations.  Most of these were used in the charity raffle at the Inn On The Green, however, two extra special items were held back for the online auction.

Ri2K donated the handbag pictured above worth a massive £125!  Please visit eBay and place some bids as all the money from this auction will be going to the Stroke Association:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170374202324&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT

For those of you lucky enough to know Andrew, you will be well aware of his love for Duran Duran.  I think the band could sense this love as they kindly donated a signed CD, Red Carpet Massacre, and a T-Shirt!  Please support Action for Children with this auction by bidding on these items:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170374209008&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT

Both items are due to finish Sunday 30th August at around 21:00 so make sure you get your bids in before then!  Happy bidding people and remember to spread the word!

I was so happy when we were told that Bedford Parking Services had cancelled the parking penalty notice.  However, on return home and reading their letter, it seems that despite the cancellation they still hold us responsible for somehow not displaying the ticket correctly.  You will be pleased to hear that I am not letting the matter rest and have sent them a letter and photo to hopefuly get some kind of an apology…getting a donation is starting to look less likely!  The little guy is fighting the system…I’ll keep you posted.

After a later start this morning and arriving in a small town called Lowdham, our expectations of fundraising were quite low today.  However, thanks to the kind hearts of the locals and again the Co-op, we managed to raise another £80 in just over 2 hours.  Thank you Lowdham.

Andrew has just left for a short 8kM run to Oxton.

Morning all!  Looking at the photo above, you might think that we found the perfect location to pitch up last night…how wrong we were.  It seems that this quiet road, just off the A52, doubles up as the M1 south in the early hours and the camper van has been constantly rocking by cars passing at over 60 mph (I promise you that it’s because of the cars!!!).  Put that with the delightful youths who decided to hoot as they passed last night, we probably could have found somewhere better to stop.

Despite all of this, Andrew has had a good nights sleep and is looking 100 times better than yesterday morning.  He aims to set off for his first run at 10:00am, finishing in Lowdham and then a 2nd and last leg of the day in the afternoon, taking us to Oxton.  From there we will head back into Nottingham where a double bed, bath and washing machine are all waiting…oh, and a bbq and a few light beverages!

Dobie reached Harby in record time. However, sadly the village only had one shop and whilst I’m sure we would have been welcome to do a spot of fundraising, the through traffic might have been dissappointing so we shot up to Bingham and found the nearest Coop. Dobie took Dave’s place with pride and we even saw our first donation of £10 from a very kind gentleman. We’re back in the camper having dinner and then it’s back to Harby for Dobie to run to Bingham this time!!!