Bathgate brothers get running shoes on for charity

Oct 27 2011 by Allan Valente, West Lothian Courier

TWIN brothers from Bathgate are holding a colossal day of running at the town’s sports centre to raise cash for Help for Heroes.

Trainers Damian and Joseph Duffin are hosting the event which will see a group of their clients from Experience Exercise collectively complete a 250-mile trek for the charity.

The pair, who attended St Margaret’s Academy in Livingston, are holding the event on November 6 on the Bathgate Sports Centre’s ash track.

The lads founded Experience Exercise in 2007, and specialise in physical fitness training with courses including military fitness classes, kettlebell training and morning and evening fit camps, as well as taking other sports training.

And they both know how valuable fundraising days like these are.

Damian (25) said: “We are doing it for Help for Heroes as my brother and I used to be in the Royal Marine Reserves and we know a couple of people who have recently come back from serving in Afghanistan.

“We just want to help the soldiers who have been injured over there and in other places.What better reason to train is there than to help people?

“I never served out in places like that myself, but because we have friends who did we feel really strongly about helping out the cause.

“This is our first involvement with Help for Heroes but we did run the 10k for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution in 2009 with people from our classes.”

His brother Joseph, who also works as a motorbike instructor, said everyone was looking forward to the event.

He said: “It’s a great cause and it’s also a chance for people who have signed-up to develop their fitness.

“They know they have an endurace event coming up and they can set goals for themselves.

“We have spoken to people in the classes about why we are doing it and they know we were in the Reserves.

“We just want to support these guys, we never did any tours but we know boys who have come back and we have spoken about some who didn’t come back so it’s quite close to the heart for us.

“We’ll definitely reach our target – I’ll stay all day if I have to. We are going to get there early to start racking up the miles.”

Around 40 clients have signed up for the day, each collecting sponsors or making donations.

Damian added: “It’s the first independent fundraiser we have done so we aren’t actually too sure of how much we are aiming to raise.

“We are hoping the runners will do about five miles each but obviously some people will want to do more than that.

“We actually have some friends who served out in Afghanistan coming to the event as well to join in, which is great.

“We've got plans to do a fundraiser every year now.”

Help for Heroes buckets have been set up in Torra Scotia Sports in Bathgate for anyone who would like to make a donation.