Thank You From Tommy

By Tommy Lillington

Ok so the time has come to depart and head off to that mountain - what a year it has been! When I reflect on 2013 I remember back to that first meeting when I saw faces around the table that I had never seen before - not realising how quickly these people would become my friends. I remember the hours and hours we have spent walking the amazing Dorset coast as well as the fundraising events where we met wonderful people who found time to come along and support our wonderful charity.

Most of all though I remember the laughter. I have laughed a lot over the last year and that's the great thing about hiking - you can still enjoy banter while you train. I have to say though; the reason for this article is not just for reflection, it is also for me to say a few thank yous and (at risk of this now sounding like an acceptance speech) I will now do so...

Firstly I want to thank all my friends who have put up with my endless Facebook posts and sponsorship pleas over the last 12 months - thanks guys for following my journey.

I want to thank those of you who have supported our chosen charity; whether through attending and supporting fundraising events or through your very kind donations - thank you so much.

I want to thank each and everyone of my fellow climbers who have had to put with Tommy Lillington in their lives for 12 months. It's been a roller coaster but we are here and as ready as we can ever be.

Thank you Bethany for blogging my updates over the last 12 months. You are doing this as a good friend of the climbing group and I just want you to know that it is really appreciated.

I would also like to thank Jack Daniels for kicking off this whole crazy idea and without whom none of this would have happened. I want you to know that your hard work throughout the year is really appreciated - thank you Jack.

Lastly I want to say my biggest thank you to my amazing family; my two amazing boys who have had to put up with Dads ramblings for the last year but never complained and have given great support to their old man. To hear both of them tell me how proud they are makes me want to burst - thank you boys I love you very much.

Now onto my biggest thank you..to my wonderful wife who has been there for me for the whole year. Thank you for coming on training walks with me, kicking my arse when needed and providing emotional backup all the way. Natasha Lillington you are the most wonderful person and I thank and love you so much. I promise you that you will get me back in 2014 - thank you xxx

Thanks again everyone wish me luck and I will see you on the other side :-) 

If you would like to sponsor Tommy Lillington, please click here: http://www.justgiving.com/Tommy-Lillington

Lillington in the Atlas Mountains

By Tommy Lillington

Back in January this year, my wife Natasha booked us a trip to Marrakech to give us a break in October. 'How lovely' I thought, 'I've never been there before and culturally it will definitely be an experience.'

So for most of this year that was how it stayed in my mind - a trip I was looking forward to as precious time to be spent with my wife exploring yet another city.

What I didn't realise until I found out a month ago, was that one of the reasons my wife chose Marrakech was because the Atlas Mountains are close by and so I could use one of the days as a training day.

Now all of a sudden the trip was not just a short fun break, but also the opportunity to try another Mountain. After finding this out I said to Natasha "OMG we just have to do some trekking out there'" and she responded with a smile and "Yes we do and that's why I've already booked us a day's trekking up Mount Toubkbal." Imagine my delight!

How sad have I become? I'm no longer content with just a city break  - a trekking day makes it all the more exciting!! So here I am writing this blog post from a sun bed in 35 degree heat about to recall yesterday's amazing day in the Atlas Mountains. Here goes....

Natasha and I were greeted by our driver at 9am who walked us from our Riad to where he was parked. Now you have to understand Marrakech to appreciate that you really do need to be greeted and walked to a meeting place. Why? Because the narrow streets are a complete maze to the first time visitor and whilst it's great to get lost and explore it's not good when you have to meet someone at a given time.

So off we go, spending what seems like an age just getting out of the walled city. You really do take your life in your hands when you drive out here - there seem to be no rules at all! Every man for himself seems to be the order of the day. Crazy!

So after eventually leaving the city we are on the open road. I use the term road very loosely, perhaps 'one series of crater sized potholes connected with small amounts of sometimes tarmac but mostly dirt' would be a more accurate description. The mountain range is approx 65k from the city so we were both now preparing ourselves for a bone shaking experience.

As is customary out here you go nowhere without the driver stopping for the opportunity to 'buy goods' from his 'friends'. In this instance it was a small little abode at the foot of the mountain range that had a number of women extracting oil from the Argon nut using hand tools, and so we felt duly obliged to buy the Argon oil which I'm sure like all other purchases of this type will be yet another completely life changing experience!

We got back in the car for what was by far the scariest part of the trip -  the drive up the winding narrow roads around the mountain at what can only be described as lunacy speed. Trucks were only at the last second swerving to avoid the, what seemed like, inevitable head on crashing!! Aaagggghhh get me outta here!!

Phew !! Eventually we arrive at the Village and meet our guide for the day Muhammed. Muhammed leads the way at a very very slow pace. Now all of my Kilimanjaro friends will tell you I am a slow walker but even for me this was very very slow. In over 30 degree heat this was probably just as well.

The mountain itself stands at 13,300 ft so it is no small mountain. It would take 3-4 days to trek it from sea level (knowing what I know now that probably would have been a lot safer than the car ride)!!

We trekked for approximately 3 hours and experienced the most amazing views. We walked across streams, saw some of the most wonderful waterfalls and crossed some very dodgy bridges. The views at the highest point made it all worthwhile - they were truly stunning.

On our return back to the village we were made to feel very welcome in Muhammad's home where we were provided with what can only be described as a feast, wonderful traditional Morrocan food. 

So after saying farewell to Muhammad and his family I realised that the day's adventure hadn't quite finished. We still had to prepare ourselves for the manic car trip down the mountain!!

A little tip for anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation and one I wished I'd thought of on the way up: close your eyes!! Even if it means pretending to be asleep, just close them all the way!!

So with our hearts still in our mouths we did eventually get down and finally back to Marrakech. What a day that was - simply amazing. It was one I won't forget in a hurry and for once not just because of the climb! From now on coastal walks in Dorset will seem somewhat tame in comparison.

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An Evening Coastal Walk

By Benny Wain

Well this is the first blog I've done ever in my whole life.

For once I managed to finish work a bit early yesterday, so I managed to persuade Jack to pick me up and it was off to the Lulworth car park to meet up with Tommy and Lee.

It was a beautiful afternoon/evening and as Tommy later pointed out, probably one of the last evening coastal walks we would be doing as the nights are drawing in.

To be honest I was dreading it...and the flash backs of nearly being sick the last time (for over doing it) had been haunting me for months.

So off we went, waking up Lee from a post work snooze in his car, and headed up the first hill. This walk is always a killer because you go straight onto the steep hill at the start.

As I hadn't done this walk for a few months I had forgotten about the land slide, so as we got to the top I stopped to have a look at what mother nature had done to the coastal path. Jack pointed out that soon the Caravan Park at Durdle Door would have cliff top views and we headed inland on the new detour.

It wasn't long before we hit the killer hills so I just tucked in behind Tommy and kept my head down. He was setting a nice steady pace and that's how it stayed until we got to the monument.

After a quick banana we turned around and headed back. It was getting late and as we were heading back up the final steep climb we were overtaken by a squaddie guy running! We were all very impressed by this until he stopped for a breather at the top.

It wasn't long before we were back at the car park. We managed to complete the walk in about 2 hours 20 minutes.

Although I haven't been doing much walking recently, I have been cycling a lot, and this seems to be paying off as it didn't kill me yesterday and I didn't ache this morning.

Finally it was pointed out that if we go for one walk a week we only have 16 more walks left...eeeek !

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Saturday Morning Training Walk

By Lee Burton

Saturday morning. A small group of the team met at our house to start a training warm up of bacon and sausage sarnies. Tommy was in need, after all he had a Friday night with a few drinks clearly forgetting his age. Then the four of us - Tommy, Jack, Jaime and moi, set off on a more gentle but longer round robin around Dorset. Not hitting the altitude but making sure we put miles and hours on our feet.

A few hills thrown in for good measure but none good enough for Sir Daniels who continued to chunter on his way around. The weather was excellent, better than expected. 3 hours, 10.5 miles and plenty of banter all the way around with each individual being systematically bullied through one form or another. I think I won the overall Jaime 'F-off' requests.

Tommy managed to pass all three of his shirt front sponsors on the trip so they know they are getting value for money and he is putting his miles in.

Rounded off with a cuppa on our patio and some forward planning.

Until the next walk.

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Tommy Gets Sentimental About Old Boots

Goodbye old boots, hello newbies!!

By Tommy Lillington

There comes a time in all our lives when for whatever reason we have to say goodbye to dear friends. I have to say, regrettably, I have just reached such a point. Two dear friends of mine have just reached the end of the road and I have had to make the tough decision to say goodbye to my old walking boots. "Why so sentimental about an old pair of boots?" I hear you cry.

Allow me to explain; I bought these boots just after I made the decision to get fit and lose weight, and decided that hiking was going to be my thing. I then started a nine month training programme to climb the three peaks (Ben Nevis, Scaffel Pike and Snowdon) which entailed walking the wonderful Dorset coast week in and week out, gradually upping the distance and difficulty as time went on. Not once during this time did my old boots complain; in fact I have to say from the first time I put them on they felt as comfortable as a pair of slippers.

Over time the weight came off, my stamina and fitness increased and my old pals took me up the three peaks in July 2012. This was followed by a lovely hiking break in the Lake District with my wife later that year. Kilimanjaro is now on the horizon, (please see my earlier blog posts for how the training is going to date) and I have to say I couldn't have got even this far without my old friends.

So you see to me these are not just any old pair of boots, they have taken me on a journey in more ways than one. Of course I won't just discard them to one side never to be seen again, I will keep them for the odd dog walk and maybe some gardening and will certainly never forget that they have changed my life.

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Lillington's Training Goes to Europe!

By Tommy Lillington

I'm always looking for something a bit different when it comes to training so imagine how excited I was when I was offered the opportunity to climb Pic de Neulous by fellow Kilimanjaro hiker Jane Massey who has a holiday home very close to this mountain. So my wife Lou, my son Albert and I flew down to the beautiful Laroque des Alberes in the south of France.

 We were greeted by beautiful weather and spent a lovely weekend with Jane and her family. On the Saturday, Jane, myself and Albert headed off on a brief walk to the village where we met our guide for the day Bernard.

Bernard is a veteran of this mountain and could probably climb it with his eyes shut!! so we were in safe hands. Mount Neulous (1,255 metres high) stands at approximately the same height as Ben Nevis so we knew we were on for no small climb. The immediate difference between the two mountains is that this is a wooded mountain and so lovely shade was provided for most of the way up.

It was a good steady climb with some very steep scrambles in places. It took us just about four hours which wasn't bad considering we couldn't help but stop and take pictures of the stunning views. Eventually we got there and the first thing you notice is that despite leaving in searing heat it was significantly chillier at the top. But wow what a view – it was well worth it. The best bit though was to come which was lunch at the restaurant at the top with Lou and Mark, Jane’s husband, who drove up to meet us. It was fantastic and well earned I can tell you.

 Next for the 2 hour descent. Anyone who has done any form of mountain climbing will tell you that coming down is as hard, or harder, than going up. Most trips or falls happen on the way down. In this case it was Jane and Bernard who took a tumble but nothing too serious just bruised bottoms!!

 I always feel that when you are coming down a mountain you see and appreciate the views even more simply because you’re facing away from the mountain and can take it all in. That day was no exception. The views were stunning all the way down. After a couple of hours we were back in the village where Bernard made us all a well earned tea.

This was my fourth mountain and I have to say my favourite. l loved every minute of it and to have my son with me made it that little bit more special.

Thank you Jane and Mark for a wonderful weekend.

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Training and Fundraising Update

By Tommy Lillington

To say the last few weeks has been busy would be an understatement - it has been full on on all fronts , work , social and of course Kilimanjaro training and fundraising.

Both work work and social have seen me travelling up to London a fair bit so its been quite manic.

Training

The weather has been and still remains very cold but the good news is that it didn't seem to put anyone off the training, in fact aside from my weekend walks a lot of the other guys have been walking like bilio in the weekend and some on consecutive days!! Brilliant.

Because of the cold weather I have used that as an opportunity to buy and try out some cold weather clothing I purchased at Great Western Camping in Dorchester, I've got to say I have felt warm as toast with my new Gloves, socks and thermal vest!!

From my perspective I've upped the midweek training to Include 2 circuits or 1 circuits and 1 swimming session or kettle bells. That combined with the weekend walking is working really well and I'm already feeling fitter or should I say knackered!!

We have started walking on Tuesday evenings now and its great fun ,because of the darker nights we are walking from Dorchester out to Stratton (Saxon Arms) back to the Sun Inn and into town its around 10 miles and yes I admit it does sound like a pub crawl its still very good training.

As with my last challenge the most enjoyable part is the banter with the rest of the crew it seems no matter who the walking group of the day is everybody seems to be in good spirits and they seem to be enjoying the company as much as I am.

Fundraising

From my perspective I've had a an amazing few weeks on the fundraising front and since my last blog I've had an amazing donation of £2000 from the Hangers Heroes Charity, this is a great organisation run by Nina and Roger Hanger which is there to provide help for small local charity's, and was my chosen cause last year when I did the three peaks.

On Wednesday 20th March I was guest speaker at a local farmers wives gathering near Blandford my speech was focused on the three peaks and the trials and tribulations of how an overweight unfit man (myself) got to the stage he could climb three mountains in three day days. I'm glad to say the speech was well received and in fact I have been invited back next year to do the same talk about Kilimanjaro!!

You can imagine my joy a couple of days latter to receive a lovely letter from the lady that organised it with also a cheque for £500 that combined with £60 the ladies raised on the raffle makes a total of £560 !! how amazing !! This takes my total raised so far to approximately £2700 excluding any gift aid.

Meanwhile my fellow fundraisers have not let the grass grow and they are already well into organising many events we went to a race night organised by Lee and Jaime Burton it was clear they put a lot of hard work into that night and it was great fun, with a total of £894 raised - fantastic!!

We are looking forward now to another weeks training and next weekends fundraising events, the hecklers ball on Good Friday and the legless walk on Easter Monday - Bring it on!!

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Tommy gets the chance to spread the word!

By Tommy Lillington

I have received an invite from a group of 'Dorset Farmers wives' to do a after dinner speech on the trials and tribulations of training for and completing the three peaks challenge

Now I'm never one to turn down the opportunity of an audience so I have gladly accepted.

What they don't know yet is that I'm also climbing Kilimanjaro so bringing that into the speech will allow me to spread the word and hopefully raise more funds. I will let you know how it goes its on the 20th March.

That's all for now

Tommy x

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My First Cash For Kilmo!

By Tommy Lillington

I went out with some clients in London on Tuesday and raided their wallets came back with my first wodge of dosh £100.

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