About me
I'm Mathew Crowhurst, a 40 years old Sales Manager (or far too old to be doing something which I would not have attempted 20 years ago! - still they say that running deserts or climbing Everest is the new mid-life crisis...., now there's a thought...Everest....no..steady on!).

I was no athlete, lets get that clear from the start, 20 years smoking Regal and Benson and Hedges laid to rest to my attempt to run any faster or further than the taxi I could hail between sellers of premium lager would allow. However, whilst I admit to still enjoying the finer things in life (usually around £3.50 a pint!) I did stop smoking 5 years ago. This left a void in my life! How else could I fill the "fix" and sense of achievement I gained from completing the length of a Marlboro Lights?

So, for the first time in 20 years I decided to get fit, I joined a Gym. Now I do not do competitive environments very well...... I tried, much to the amusement of the induction trainer, to convince her that I was an expert on all the equipment, and needed no help as I had frequented a gym at least 3 times a week.....for the last 5 years. The subsequent blood pressure test confirmed her doubts!

So, a few runs on the treadmill and a couple of glasses of vino, a documentary staring Eddie Izzard (you remember the one when he ran 40+ etc marathons across the UK..), I decided that I was ready to run across the UK. Now as I am a sensible character (??) I was going to take the easiest route possible.... East to West (against the wind) from Hornsea to Liverpool, mid summer in the only heat wave we,ve had for many years.

That was June 2010 and in those 4 days (and 6.5 Marathons) I experienced every feeling known to man ( and believe me getting lost 5 miles at the top of the Pennines, I used every swear word known too!). Yet after months of training and sacrifices (both by me and my family). I did something that gave me a level of wellbeing, only the marriage to Lucy, and the birth of my children, Henry and Beth, could compare. That run was in aide of Kirkwood Hospice. Kirklees.

And that brings me to this challenge, yes, a personal challenge and something that I desire to complete, BUT...the endless hours of training, the diet, the focus, is something that I am able to contemplate, something I am confident to complete., something I guess I am in control of......but...I am lucky to have this opportunity,.......
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Many...far too many, have greater challenges every day in the fight against cancer. Many others give their endless time and efforts, far greater than any marathon can challenge, to seek a better life for those suffering from cancer and tirelessly researching a prevention.
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Hence the reason that I am taking on this challenge for Yorkshire Cancer Research.

We have all lost loved ones who were taken too soon.
About to start my Coast to coast run across northern England in June 2010. (or translates to "desperately in-need of some pies!")
The Charity
Yorkshire Cancer Research is one of many cancer charities in the UK that work every day towards finding cures for different forms of the disease.
We are the UK’s largest regional medical research charity, funding cancer research that is carried out by world-class scientists and clinicians across Yorkshire and providing cancer information to help local people beat cancer.
Together with our partner charities fighting cancer in the UK we have made many breakthroughs which have greatly improved the way we prevent, diagnose, treat and deal with the after-effects of the disease.
Our work has been part of this vital progress and has saved the lives of many people in Yorkshire and around the world.
But we still have a long way to go. By following our mission statement and working hard to reach our goals, and with your support, through donations and fundraising, we can continue to make sure more people in Yorkshire survive cancer, and have a better quality of life.
Click on the link at the top of the page for more details or click HERE