Oxfam Trailwalker Challenge Fundraising on 16th- 17th July

The annual fundraising event from Oxfam, Trailwalker 2005, will be held on 16th-17th July. The route is set to be on the South Downs Way between Petersfield and Brighton. Every single team of challengers will aim to raise a minimum of £1000.

The challenge of Trailwalker is to get a team of four across 100km in less than 30 hours. By gathering sponsors for the team, the funds raised will go towards helping overcome poverty and suffering. This year, all the money will be used to support education projects run by the Gurkha Welfare Trust in Nepal and the work of Oxfam in more than 80 of the world’s poorest countries.

David Hinsley, from Deutsche Bank, last year’s Trailwalker shared, "We set ourselves the goal of getting round the course in under 20 hours. Our training really paid off with the team crossing the finish line in just over 17 hours."

"What really stood out for me on the day was the scale of the event. Trailwalker is an enormous logistical undertaking and brilliantly organised. The set up at the checkpoints was superb and the encouragement from the Gurkhas really appreciated. The cheering at the finish was a nice touch too," he continued.

Hinsley’s team raised £8,000 (with £3,000 Deutsche Bank matched funding) and completed the course in 17 hours 5 minutes.

The history of Trailwalker dates back to the 1980’s. Trailwalker was founded in Hong Kong by the Queen’s Gurkha Signals Regiment in 1981. The challenge was to complete 100km of the Maclehose Trail in 48 hours. The event was initially envisaged as a training exercise - testing fitness and teamwork - but was quickly adapted to raise funds for the Gurkha Welfare Trust.

In 1986, the Queen’s Gurkha Signals invited Oxfam Hong Kong to partner with them on the event. By 1996, the event was raising over £1million.

In 1997 the United Kingdom returned Hong Kong back to China and the Queen’s Gurkha Signals were stationed in the UK where they quickly established the event on the South Downs. Trailwalker UK has become the largest ultra-distance marathon in the UK. Oxfam Great Britain has been invited to work together in the fundraising event since 2002 and Trailwalker has become Oxfam GB’s top fundraising event.

Oxfam Hong Kong has continued to organise Trailwalker every year as well, which has raised over £2million in a single weekend. The event has even spread to Australia. In 2004, one Trailwalker was held in Sydney and the other in Melbourne.

Please check the Oxfam Trailwalker website for details.