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Captain Barclay ancestor and artist, Georgina Barclay, auctions Dunwoody challenge oil painting
To commemorate Richard’s 1000 Mile Challenge, Georgina Barclay painted Richard at the half-mile point in Newmarket. If anyone would like to bid for the painting please contact Georgina Barclay via her website www.georginabarclayartist.com. Prints are also available.
Profits from the sale will go Richard’s four charities – Racing Welfare, the Alzheimer’s Society, Sparks and Spinal Research
Richard Dunwoody walks 1000 Miles in 1000 Hours
10th July 2009
Final Stats: Richard was on the road for 255 hours 57 minutes and 36 seconds walking the '1000 Miles in 1000 Hours', 39 hours and 51 seconds quicker than Captain Barclay (although obviously his Nike trainers and superior equipment helped).
His fastest walking mile was 12 minutes and 19 seconds and his slowest, 17 minutes and 9 seconds with the average at 15 minutes and 21 seconds.
He generally got quicker as the challenge progressed with his slowest 100 miles the first 100 at 26 hours and 46 minutes of road time, and his last 100 the quickest, at 24 hours and 33 minutes.
Captain Barclay lost 2 stone and 3lbs; Richard lost 3lbs - but that may be down to the amazing hospitality he had at the Bedford Lodge Hotel!
Captain Barclay won a 1000 Guineas bet; Richard has made well over £100,000 for charity and still rising....donations are all still welcome and much appreciated!
THE FINAL DAY
At 2.20pm on Friday 10th July, Richard Dunwoody completed his '1000 Mile Challenge' having walked day and night for 42 days one mile every hour for 1000 consecutive hours.
He was joined for the last mile by racing legend Lester Piggott (pictured) and together they passed the winning post in front of packed stands on Newmarket Racecourse.
Where as Captain Barclay undertook the challenge for a 1000 Guineas bet, Richard completed the challenge to raise money for four charities - Racing Welfare, the Alzheimer's Society, Sparks and Spinal Research. Bookmaker Paddy Power recreated the bet and will donate the sum of £10,000 to the Charity Trust.
The challenge has so far raised in excess of £100,000 but more is hoped for and needed and donations can be made via this website.
Richard said:
"I undertook this challenge to raise as much money as I could for the charities but I had absolutely no idea that I would receive this level of support. It's been great that so many people have got involved and I have been both humbled and inspired by this. There are so many people that I need to thank - the team who have looked after me, the Bedford Lodge Hotel who have housed and fed me, and our partners, in particular Godolphin, Darley, Barclays, Paddy Power, Nike and the Jockey Club. It is an experience I shall never forget, although I'm looking forward to getting a little bit of sleep now!"
"One of the greatest human feats ever attempted"*
On 29th May 2009 at 11.30pm, Richard Dunwoody started a 1000 Mile Challenge to walk the same mile 1000 consecutive times (from the Bedford Lodge hotel in Newmarket up the Bury Road to a post half a mile away and back again) for a 1000 consecutive hours with the last mile up the home straight of Newmarket racecourse just before the Ladbrokes Bunbury Cup on 10th July 2009.
In 1809 Captain Robert Barclay Allardice was bet that he couldn’t walk 1000 miles in 1000 hours for 1000 Guineas – meaning he had to walk one mile in every consecutive hour 24 hours a day – the challenge therefore taking 42 days with the maximum an hour and 20 minutes sleep at any one time (if you walk back to back miles in different hours). He completed the challenge on 12th July 1809, losing three stone in the process with his challenge hailed as ‘one of the greatest human feats ever attempted.’
200 years on, champion jockey, polar explorer and BBC presenter, Richard Dunwoody MBE is recreating this challenge walking the same mile 1000 times in Newmarket – 1000 miles in 1000 hours but this time to raise a substantial sum for charity – Alzheimer's Society, SPARKS, Racing Welfare and Spinal Research.
In doing so, Richard aims to set an example to the nation to promote Walking the Way to Health, raise much necessary charity funds during tough economic times, as well as promote sport in the build up to the 2012 Olympics. Famous faces will join Richard along the way and the University of Ulster will conduct an important physiological and psychological study into how the body copes with such a super test of human endurance.
Richard says:
“My South Pole expedition last year was tough, but this might take it to a completely different level! 42 days with very little sleep could drive me to breaking point, but we’ve set ourselves an ambitious fund-raising target…and that’s what this challenge is about.”
There will also be simultaneous walks around the country for those seeking to actively participate in fund-raising as well as to follow Richard's example in walking your way to better health. To do something yourself please see the ‘Get Involved’ page.
To follow Richard’s progress please join our Facebook page and search for Richard on Twitter. And most importantly, please DONATE as much as you can to support our charities.
“Richard Dunwoody really IS Mr Incredible. His fundraising efforts over the years have been tremendous and we thought it would be tough to ‘cap’ trekking to the South Pole. But the ‘1,000’ miles walk does just that…you feel exhausted just thinking about it! It’s so typical of Richard - a man for whom no challenge is too big or too bizarre to take on.”
Sparks co-presidents Gabby and Kenny Logan
* From ‘The Celebrated Captain Barclay’ by Peter Radford
Picture in Richard Dunwoody 1000 Mile Challenge logo is copyright of the Horse Racing Museum, Newmarket
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