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"A Wa Po"
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Latest News
2009
May
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A Wa Po Welsh 3000s 2009 Event Report
On Saturday May 2nd, over 20 runners descended on a small village in deepest North Wales armed with pounds of pasta and fell running shoes.
At 4am on Sunday 3rd, the event kicked off - on time! - as we marched as one up Snowdon to the start of the event proper: a run/walk/crawl across all fifteen 3000ft+ mountains in Wales within 24 hours.
As we reached Snowdon’s summit the sun rose blessing us with the kind of scene that evokes awe and silence, not adjectives.
Not everyone made it across Crib Goch (see pic below), some finding out about vertigo for the first time, others choosing to dive off it head first before taking an alternative route... via a local hospital.
The sun gods smiled on us all day rendering the challenge easier, in that navigation was relatively simple with the next peak - or few peaks on some sections - always clearly visible, but harder in terms of heat exhaustion and hydration. Some however, still picked some very interesting lines across some sections, for example Paul and Nick’s descent of Glyder Fach...
The support crews did a sterling job at each check point, withstanding the behaviour of their sweaty, smelly, single-minded other halves, friends and in some cases, new acquaintances met for the first time the previous night. Si’s girlfriend, Angela, deserves a special thank you for supporting half the runners, ferrying them from the end of the event, and even taking one to hospital. Massive A Wa Po thanks, Angela!
Some 35 miles after starting and back at the welcoming Cwellyn Arms, there was a mixture of feelings among the group, ranging from anguish and despair to joy. Among many there was an enthusiasm to do it all again next year, either with the aim of cracking all of the peaks next time, or just doing it faster!
The spirit was excellent between all involved and I was immensely proud of everyone present - the runners for taking part in what for everyone was the hardest thing they had ever taken on, and the support crews for doing such a superb job.
Until next year... Happy Days!
David Buglar
A Wa Po Trustee and 3000s Coordinator
Further thanks to:
All at the Cwellyn Arms for looking after us so brilliantly
Richard Askwith for writing Feet in the Clouds!
Pete Bland Sports
2008
November
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A Wa Po stall at the charity fashion show:
Our second stall was set up at a charity show near Southampton for a very worthy cause. We had a really enjoyable evening and great interest in A Wa Po's stall and aims. We were very honoured to take part at the charity event of the very worthy 'Sophie's Appeal' (www.sophiesappeal.org).
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We have several fundraising events planned for the New Year:
In March a sponsored bike ride from London-Cologne.
In May a charity cricket match in Kew Gardens.
Ca 10 sponsored runners in the Welsh 3000 race - a marathon-length run up Mt. Snowdon, passing 15 peaks 3000ft or higher - also in May.
We are planning a large event which will be a London-Lagos rally.
Furthermore, there will be several music, poetry and comedy nights throughout the year.
More information coming soon.
September
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On Saturday the 6th of September, the Awapo team descended upon Kew Fayre to raise awareness of the issues surrounding disability in Nigeria and what we are attempting to do about it. Unfortunately the rain poured down on us and kept the numbers small but we nonetheless enjoyed ourselves and did as much as we could in the circumstances. We showed our film and gave out leaflets as well as selling cards, books, fabrics and modelling balloons.
Thanks to Nick for donating our fantastic new t-shirts, Will for his Balloons and a special thanks to Kate for her individually signed books and all of the effort she put in for the cards and the leaflets. Thanks as well to the organisers of Kew Fayre who got behind us and provided us with all we needed.
This has been the first of many public events and we look forward to doing many more. If you know of a fayre or event that you think Awapo should make an appearance at, please do let us know.
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We would like to invite you to visit the A Wa Po stall at this year's Kew Fayre , with fun things to do and buy. Come along to support our cause, on Saturday 6 September 2008. A Wa Po volunteers will be there to tell you all about it.
Kew Fayre is an annual event/funfair on Kew Green, where charities and small businesses can exhibit and sell their produce. The Fayre will feature market stalls, a fairground, live music, a dog show, a reptile house and a petting zoo. Most importantly there will of course be food as well as a beer and tea tent. So there will be something for everyone.
We hope to see you there for a fun day out for the whole family.
Click here for a map to Kew Green
May
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David's account of his fundraising run:
My cousin (Pete) and I completed the the Welsh 3000s - 26 miles across fifteen 3000ft mountains in Wales - within our target time of 12 hours, despite very bad conditions (60mph + winds), a navigational error that cost us nearly an hour, and an over indulgent bacon sandwich stop between two of the ranges thanks to our wonderful support crew, Bernd and Matt.
We set off at just after 4am having slept on top of Snowdon on the Saturday night, with just a dram of Bowmore to see us off to sleep. We woke to find ourselves in a cloud (literally) being battered by winds. Our first attempt to start was aborted after an unsuccessful attempt at getting down off the cairn at the summit of Snowdon - the winds were so high that we were being blown off it.
The first range went very well and we got across Grib Goch and down well ahead of time. The next range proved the most difficult and we lost a bit of time as a combination of tiredness and hunger led to a navigational error that set us back. However, having stopped for bacon and red bull between the Glyder and Carnedd sections, we managed to grind the last Carnedds out, doing a fair bit of running where the terrain allowed, and we made the time back up to finish on target.
It was by far the hardest thing I have ever done and I still cannot walk properly due to a heal injury, but I will be doing it again next year, organising 20 teams of two to make it more of a challenge event in aid of A Wa Po.
March
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Will Francome and Phil Moore did great work on producing our short film, which includes interviews with people from the local community. Please make sure you have a look, click here.
Febuary
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The amazing David Buglar and Pete Godwin will be running the ‘Welsh 3000s Challenge’ in
the name of A Wa Po.
The challenge involves climbing the fifteen
3,000ft mountains in Snowdonia, all in one day. The walk will cover the
seven peaks of the Carneddau, the highest and largest mountain range
south of Scotland, the five peaks of the Glyderau, with the famous rock
peak Tryfan and the three main peaks on the Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa)
horseshoe.
Together they will cover a distance of 26 miles and ascend over
13,000ft. We will be there to support their brilliant effort.
January
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Kate Deadman and Claire Kennedy have joined A Wa Po as volunteer fundraisers.
We are extremely lucky to have them on board and with their great enthusiasm we will push the project ahead.
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We are happy to announce that John Stanger-Leathes has joined the board
of trustees, bringing great support and knowledge in accountancy to
the team. He also takes the position of company secretary.
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Anastasis Chrysovoulos has joined as our programmer and will compliment Phil in the talented and creative web-team.
2007
December
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Berni Widemann and Will Francome came back from a second successful trip to Nigeria. They
were met with amazing hospitality and help in both Abeokuta and Lagos.
Will documented the trip on film, which is in the
process of being edited into a short informative video clip that will
soon feature on the website.
During the week they made great contacts and have been in talks to
secure land, which will be used as school-grounds.
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Indigo Press very kindly donated our christmas cards, which together with Phil Dobinson's design were a total success.
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Next to creating our webiste Phil has also given us his creative input into designing our organisation's logo.
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