Velindre Walks - Brains SA Captains' Climb

Brains SA Captains Climb update and details of FREE events with Warren Gatland and Welsh Captains

As part of the Brains SA Captains Climb fundraising for Velindre’s Stepping Stones Appeal we have arranged DVD signings with the rugby boys. All proceeds from the DVD sales will be going to Velindre so please come along and support the charity. Here are details of the events with Warren Gatland and former Welsh Captains:
 
7pm Wed 1st December
Old Arcade (Cardiff) Warren Gatland, Mike Hall & Rob Howley

7pm Wed 8th December
Duke of Wellington (Cowbridge) Jon Humphreys & Ieuan Evans

7pm Thurs 9th December 
Yard (Cardiff) Bob Norster & Garin Jenkins

The DVD costs £10 and contains all the footage from the Captains Climb ITV Trilogy as well as new, previously unseen, footage. With Christmas around the corner, the DVD will make a great stocking filler for rugby enthusiasts or adventurers alike.

If you can’t make the above events you can still get your hands on this entertaining DVD at the following venues:
 
Bridgend:
Red Dragon
Ty Risha (near McArthur Glen)
White Horse (Coychurch)

Cardiff:
Barocco
Birchgrove
Cardiff Cottage
City Arms
Dempsey’s
Duke of Wellington
Goat Major
Halfway
Kitty Flynn’s
Model Inn
Old Arcade
Pendragon
Westgate
Yard

Cowbridge:
Duke of Wellington

Cross Hands:
Phoenix

Llanelli:
Stradey Arms
Thomas Arms

Penllergaer:
Old Inn

Pontardulais:
Black Horse

Swansea:
Black Boy
Hen Dderwen
Vivian

Treforest:
Pick & Shovel

Lung cancer remains a difficult disease to treat and is the most common cause of Cancer death in England & Wales. This disease affects smokers and non-smokers alike and research to improve treatment is significantly underfunded at the moment. By supporting the Brains SA Captains Climb you will help advance research into lung cancer, stage by stage and step by step.

 
Help us to help others

 

Mark Taylor (@Tayls13) talks about the Brains SA Captains Climb with details of how u can win rugby memorabilia

With only just over a week to go before we head off for Tanzania Mark Taylor has kindly freed up some time to share his thoughts on the Brains SA Captains Climb. Mark doesn't need much of an introduction, he has won 52 Welsh Caps, played in two Rugby World Cups, scored the very first try in the Millennium Stadium which led to a first Welsh win over the Springboks and Mark was a British & Irish Lion in the 2001 tour of Australia. Wow!

Here's what Mark had to say . . . . .

How do you feel about being involved in such a wonderful fundraising event for Velindre?

It feel like a great honour to be involved in such a good cause, and also a tremendous privilege to be asked. It’s vitally important to raise awareness of the work that is being done at Velindre to fight cancer, as it’s a disease that touches everyone’s lives in some way.

What fundraising have you been involved in this year?

Aside from attending some of the Captain’s Climb events this year, I’m currently doing a Twitter-based fundraiser, whereby anybody who donates £5 to my page (http://www.justgiving.com/captaintaylor) and leaves a Twitter ID gets entered into my raffle. First prize is currently one of my Welsh playing jerseys, second is a choice of Sale Sharks/Ospreys/Scarlets playing jersey – if I get up to £1,000 donated I’ll make the top prize a Lions jersey with the others becoming 2nd and 3rd prizes.

Kilimanjaro is no walk in the park, why did you feel it was important to get involved in the Brains SA Captains Climb?

I agreed to get involved because of the great cause it represented and because of the personal element – I’ve known Huw for many years and was keen to help out in any way possible.

With only a few weeks left until we set off how do you feel your training is going?

I’ve been doing lots of walking, particularly up Pen Y Fan and my usual hill running and weight training, so my general fitness is not too bad. However, that is not going to prepare me for the lack of oxygen at high altitude, so I’m hopefully going to have a few sessions in the oxygen chamber at the University of Glamorgan to get a feel of what it’s like.

In terms of the Kili climb, what are you looking forward to the most?

Hopefully, the sense of achievement if I make it to the summit! I’m sure it’s going to be a real adventure with a great group of people, but I have to admit to being nervous about the altitude.

Many of us walking will have the privilege of walking with our Welsh rugby heroes, who would be in your dream walking group?

My wife Nicola (obviously), Kenny Dalglish, Steven Gerrard, Muhammad Ali, King Leonidas of Sparta and Homer Simpson.

Have you done anything adventurous like this before?

Absolutely nothing that comes close.

When the going gets tough what will be your inspiration to keep going?

The thought of the battle that cancer sufferers face every day. I recently lost my father-in-law to pancreatic cancer and saw at first hand how debilitating the illness was, so if I’m struggling I can use that as the motivation to dig deep and carry on.

What luxury item will you be taking with you?

My iPhone, so I can keep in touch with my wife and kids, and keep an eye on the football scores!

What luxury will you miss most when you’re on the mountain?

Just my home in general.

Will you be taking a book with you, if so what will it be?

Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield – it’s based on the stand made by the Spartans and their allies at Thermopylae against the invading Persians. Basically, a story of courage in the face of huge adversity – a bit like what I’ll need at the bottom of the mountain!

You’re big on Twitter, are you planning on tweeting your progress during the climb?

As long as it is possible, I will. My brother is lending me his solar phone charger so hopefully I’ll have enough power to keep me going – apparently the low temperature as you approach the summit makes the battery run out in about 20 mins, so if I’m lucky enough to make the top it will be a quick photo and tweet!

Here’s the quick fire ‘your choice’ round?

Sweet or Savoury: Savoury

Vinny Jones or Tom Jones: Vinny Jones

Poached or scrambled: Scrambled

Flip flops or trainers: Trainers

Wine or Beer: Neither really, wine at a push

Rock or pop: Rock

Jeans or Tracksuit: Tracksuit

Twitter or Facebook: Twitter

Scabble or Monopoly: Scrabble

TV or Book: Book unless it’s football

Gavin or Stacey: Stacey

Pasta or Rice: Both

Lego or Crayons: Lego

iPhone or Blackberry: iPhone

Carragher or Gerrard: Stevie G


Finally, what’s on your list of last minute ‘Kili to-do list’?

Organising my kit and getting my wife to pack it for me. 

A big thank you to Mark for sparing some of the precious time that we have left before we head off on the 6th September. Keep checking VelindreWalks.com from the 6th -16th September as I'm aiming to keep you updated as we attempt to reach the roof of Africa.

Brains’ Captains Climb contribution tops £50K

Yesterday was an exciting day at Brains as we were able to announce that we had reached our £50k Sponsorship and fundraising goal for the Brains SA Captains Climb and Stepping Stones Appeal. Warren Gatland and Captains Rob Jones, Bob Norster, Andy Moore, Eddie Butler and Paul Thorburn joined us to help promote further fundraising. This blog is a mix of the Brains Press Release and a few words of my own. Huw Evans came along to photograph the milestone and half of the photos in this blog are his :)

The former captains, along with Wales coach Warren Gatland, will set off on their attempt to summit Mount Kilimanjaro on Monday 6 September, and with an overall target of £1million for the Stepping Stones Appeal Brains’ contribution will go some way to helping them achieve it.

The climb is the brainchild of WRU photographer Huw Evans, whose wife Sue was diagnosed with non-smoking related lung cancer in 2008. All money raised will go to the Stepping Stones Appeal at Velindre Cancer Centre in Cardiff.

Richard Davies, Sales and Marketing Director at Brains said: “The money has been raised through a combination of sales of our specially brewed ‘Up and Over’ charity beer, various pub events and head office fundraising. Our staff and customers have really got behind the charity so thanks must go to them for their support.”

Andrew Morris, Head of Fundraising at Velindre said: “The contribution Brains have made to Velindre Cancer Centre’s Stepping Stones Appeal is staggering – they have been heavily involved throughout the whole project, producing a special beer, helping with venues to host Information events, and each of the Captains has been adopted by a Brains pub. As well as contributing a magnificent £50,000, Brains have made a massive contribution to help raise the profile of lung cancer research”

You can still support you favourite Captain by visiting www.justgiving.com/brainssacaptainsclimb, or you can make a £2 donation by texting CLIMB to 70099, you will be charged £2 plus 1 message at your standard network rate. Velindre will receive a minimum of £1.72 from each message.

The Captains will be taking on this gruelling challenge to raise funds for the Stepping Stones Appeal, which is raising money for lung cancer research at Velindre Cancer Centre. Lung cancer is the most common form of cancer death in Wales and it is estimated by 2015 there will be a 30% increase in the most common forms of cancer in Wales. Although lung cancer is the most common form of cancer death in Wales, lung cancer research has been relatively poorly supported compared to other higher profile forms of cancer.

It was great to spend some time with the Captains and even though Huw decided to embarrass me with the Chez Lounge pose on top of the barrels I actually quite like the end result and it makes for a great memento of this very special fundraising event.

ITV were also present and even though they failed to mention Velindre or the Stepping Stones Appeal and moved Kilimanjaro from Tanzania to Kenya at least they gave the Climb a bit more publicity which is always helpful, here's the link to ITVplayer http://www.itv.com/wales/captains-climb79197/ . . . Ooh and by the way, as a group, we have raised hundreds of thousands for Velindre's Stepping Stones Appeal ;0)

Rugby legend and Velindre President, Jonathan Davies, talks to VelindreWalks.com

Some things just happen with a little luck and others come with lots of hard work. My chance to interview JD was mostly luck, his rugby career and success as President of Velindre? Mainly due to lots of hard work (and talent of course). After a successful England cricketing defeat of Australia at Sophia Gardens, last week, there were celebratory drinks in the Mochyn Du. A chance conversation between a friend and JD led to an agreement for  a Q&A with VelindreWalks and an exchange of contact details.

Of course the contact details didn't make it past my friend's hangover so I had to be a little creative to re-obtain these (thanks for the help, you know who you are). I then plucked the courage to send a tentative e-mail, hoping that the affects of alcohol hadn't exaggerated the discussion. It was only a few minute before the phone rang and a voice on the other end said "Hello Ogwen? You just e-mailed me!" A nice calm exterior was required but in my head I was shouting "OMG! Jonathan Davies has just phoned me!"

I soon realised that rugby legends don't see themselves in that same way and phoning me was just the normal, everyday, thing to do when you’re asked to help promote a good cause or raise money for a charity like Velindre. We had a quick chat and fixed a time for the Q&A, here's what Jonathan had to say:

Lots of people ask me whether you’re one of the Captains climbing Kilimanjaro, why won’t you be joining us in September?

I’ve was going to do it but I unfortunately I can’t as I have a very close friend’s wedding on September 11th and If I didn’t go my wife would divorce me  So I guess I’ll have to do other things to help raise money!

I understand that you’re good friends with Ieuan Evans, have you given him or any of the other captains any advice on preparation for the climb?

No, none at all. I wouldn’t know what to do or what to tell them. They are all getting slightly worried now because it’s getting closer and closer. They’re looking forward to it but are a bit apprehensive because it’s a big challenge. Also, Scott Gibbs said it’s the hardest thing he’s ever done and it’s pretty worrying for the boys if HE says that.

We are climbing Kili in order to raise funding for Velindre’s Stepping Stones Appeal, how important is this additional funding?

I’m President of Velindre Cancer Care Centre and my role is to raise awareness and support anything that’s happening however I can. Everything that’s done to raise money for cancer research, not just in Wales but nationally and worldwide, is a huge, huge advantage because hopefully one day they will find a cure for Cancer and that will save millions of people’s lives.

With me I help to get people to events like golf days, we raise awareness by getting companies to pick us as their charity for the year, like the NCP Park & Pledge Scheme [10p to Velindre every time someone Parks in Dumfries place Cardiff], Cardiff Bus have also supported us and that is a big advantage for us.
I try to support anybody trying to raise any amount of money for the charity.

You have been President of Velindre since May 2009, what are the highlights so for?

Things like finding out that we raised over a million pounds last year, that’s a highlight. The people who do these fundraising events, they put themselves forward to raise the money and that's the real highlight for me, the commitment of those individuals.

During this economic crisis and with lots of charities asking for support why is it so important that Velindre receives our support?

I think the majority of people in South, West & East Wales, and maybe even parts of mid Wales would travel to Velindre, there is another Centre in North Wales but the majority of people in our area, if they are unfortunate to get Cancer, would go to Velindre. I think we take it for granted until we have to visit the centre, whether you get it or somebody you know get’s it once you’ve been there you appreciate the work that the people do. The staff, the volunteer staff, everyone! Until you’ve been there it’s hard to appreciate the value it gives, they have a fantastic set-up and fantastic people working there. Hopefully people will never have to go there but I know that a lot of people will that’s why we need to raise money for this facility.

Have you got any Fundraising events coming up?

Brains SA Captains Climb is our main event, there’s also a sell out golf day on 2nd September. The main thing for me is if there are companies out there who want to help then they should make Velindre their charity for the year, that’s one of the ways that we try to raise awareness of the facility.

Now, on to rugby, do you miss playing?

I don’t think I miss it, no. I was very fortunate, I played for a long time and I enjoyed playing whilst I was fit and able. I just remember the time that I had and I thoroughly enjoyed my time playing.

I don’t miss it really and I’m lucky I’m still involved, in a Broadcasting capacity. Nothing every replaces the buzz of playing but I think I’ve had my time.

Which ground did you prefer to play on The Gnoll, Strady or Arms Park and why?

Cardiff. I suppose because they’re the ones who brought me back from league.

It’s weird really; I enjoyed Strady because I grew up watching Llanelli play there.

But, if anything, Neath gave me the chance and it’s there that I got my breakthrough into rugby. I enjoyed playing at the Gnoll, it had the best atmosphere and I suppose I felt like King of the Castle. Maybe people didn’t like going and playing there but the Neath supporters were great and I thoroughly enjoyed playing there too.

What was your favourite away ground?

St Helens had a great surface, so I guess St Helen’s or maybe Leicester.

Who do you consider was the best player you played with and why?

Terry Holmes! I was lucky to play with him, he was a great, great scrum half and great player, I was very fortunate. It’s very difficult to pick one out of them all, especially saying best player. I wouldn’t say best player because that’s unfair on others but I felt that if I played with Terry Holmes I believed that we were going to win and we weren’t going to lose. That’s the thing with Terry, he had this aura about him, and he gave you confidence. He was also the one who I played my first test with so that makes him special, that’s another reason maybe.

Who’s your most formidable ever opponent on the rugby field?

I think Michael Jones, the wing forward for New Zealand. At the time he was a new breed of back row forward, he could do everything, he was creative, he was destructive and one of the fittest, fastest forwards of that generation.

From your rugby career what is your most memorable moment?

My first cap for Wales.

How did it feel playing for Wales?

Ahhh, it’s an amazing feeling! All I wanted to do was play for Wales really and when you achieve your sporting ambition it’s a very, very special moment. It’s incredible; it’s just like a thank you to all the people who had helped you, as a kid, growing up. Your parents and family are there, it’s just an amazing feeling.

Many of us walking will have the privilege of walking with our Welsh rugby heroes, who would be in your dream walking group?

I’d go with Billy Connolly, Mohammed Ali and, let me think, Peter Kay!

Here’s the quick fire ‘your choice’ round?
Sweet or Savoury: Savoury
Vinny Jones or Tom Jones: Tom
Poached or scrambled: Poached
Flip flops or Trainers: Flip Flops
Wine or Beer: Both, I tend to start with a few pints & then have wine with dinner, a drink for every occasion!
Rock or pop: Where does Coldplay come in? Are they rock? Rock
Jeans or Tracksuit: Jeans
Twitter or Facebook: Neither, Mobile!
Scrabble or Monopoly: Scrabble
TV or Book: TV
Gavin or Stacey: Stacey
Pasta or Rice: Ooh I don’t know actually, I like both, I’ll go um Rice
Lego or Crayons: Crayons
iPhone or Blackberry: Blackberry

My first interview over and I was crossing my fingers that the free software on my laptop had recorded Jonathan's answers clearly enough for me to type things up (luck was on my side again).

Jonathan signed off with "Cheers Ogwen and fingers crossed you’ll raise lots of money with the Kilimanjaro walk" and that left me to smile like a cheshire cat for the rest of the day.

Ok, I was still a little star struck but more than that I was impressed with Jonathan's obvious commitment to Velindre, testament to the Centre's impact on individuals. It's one of the reasons why I truly find fundraising for Velindre so rewarding. I always have a positive reaction when I ask people for help, donations, etc.

Hope you enjoy the interview and if you would like to help us raise another £1,000,000 for Velindre then please visit my donation site at http://www.justgiving.com/BrainsWalks.

It's a Question of Sport for Rob Howley

One of our fellow Kili walkers, John Southcombe, was our host for the night. John has pledged to raise the £10k minimum required to join the Captains on the Kilimanjaro Climb as they help raise £1m for Velindre's Stepping Stone Appeal.

I joined Andrew Morris' Velindre team and given my below par sporting knowledge I was nominated team scribe :)

There were nearly 30 teams competing for the winning spot and John had a number of rounds to quiz us on. Rob Howley was the Special Guest for the night and he joined Huw Evans' team to lend a hand with the Q&A's.

Following a touch first half John led Rob through a Q&A session, a real insight into Rob's playing career as well as his more recent position as Welsh International Backs Coach with Warren Gatland.

Following a tie breaking end to the quiz the top 3 teams won bottles of Brains Up & Over, Peters Pies and the winning team were presented with a Grand Slam ball signed by Rob Howley & Warren Gatland.

Snowdon, 10 Welsh Rugby players, Cloud, Gales and Beer - what a combo!

When Andrew Morris, from Velindre, contacted me with an invite to climb Snowdon in March, alongside the other Kilimanjaro participants, I was thrilled. However, I soon realised that the climb fell in the same week as the Abergavenny 3 Peaks Challenge. A team from Brains, including myself, had signed up for the 2 peaks route. The 2 walks coupled with my standard Sunday ramble presented my first significant milestone; approx 35 miles in one week.

I knew that I would have rest days in-between but for my training it all seemed ideal and only a step away from walking consecutive days.

My first walk (click on the link to read all about it) was 11 miles in the Rhigos area with fabulous views over the Cynon Valley towards the Beacons. The distance meant that my legs were feeling it the next day but thankfully recovered in time for the trip to Snowdonia.

After a long, late, drive I finally arrived at the White Lion Hotel in Bala to the welcome of Eileen, the Duty manager, who had arranged for some food to be kept for me. I soon met up with some of my fellow walkers Huw Evans, James Osgood, Ben Evans, Colin Charvis, James Evans, Garin Jenkins, Russel Isaac and Mark Poyser.

On the other side of the bar another group included Rob Jones, Ieuan Evans, Andrew and Kylie from Velindre, the rest of the rugby players and quite a few walkers that I hadn't yet had the pleasure of meeting. Needless to say the time passed quickly and before we knew it we'd reached the end of our last drink ;o)

On the following morning a hearty breakfast set us off on the right foot and given the less than fabulous weather forecast we took the opportunity to take group pics before heading off for our climb.

Samples of the two charity products Up and Over Brains Beer and Captains Climb Pie were available for walkers to take a way with them.

Before we set off Huw called us all together for a briefing and surprised us by reading out a Good Luck letter from Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales!!

I was a little awestruck and can't remember his words of encouragement but I managed to find this on WalesOnline, an excerpt from the letter:

“What makes this expedition so important is not only the scale of effort and determination needed to reach the summit, but also the contribution which you are making to the vital cause of cancer research.”

I hope to get a copy of the full letter and will post it on VelindreWalks.com as soon as poss.

After a 45 minute drive we arrived at Pen y Pass and the planned route was to follow the Pyg Track to the summit. We were soon on our way and because bad weather was forecast the waterproofs were already on! Our guide, John Ellis Roberts (MBE) explained that the summit would be gusty and warned us that we would be hammered. A joke or two about a different type of hammered quickly ensued but then John led the way with an intense pace to start. I thought that due to the unexpected late start John was aiming for us to get back on schedule but in fact the players were dictating the pace. I've never been a fast walker, I would class myself as a tortoise rather than a hare and it's never let me down.

We soon spread out into the different paced groups and the weather steadily deteriorated. A handful of the players were breezing through the challenge, the weather was the biggest hurdle for me and the mountain for others. John gave us time to catch our breath at various points along the way. The track was quite well defined, most of the time, but there were sections that involved clambering over rocks and, when we got closer to the summit, slippery and sometimes steep strips of snow.

When we were approx 30 minutes from the summit the lead group were returning down the mountain. Initially we encountered Eddie Butler, Rob Jones and Garin Jenkins shortly followed by Bob Norster, Mike Hall and Ieuan Evans.  

The last section was particularly windy; the rain was about the same all the way up, lashing and horizontal! At some stages the wind would catch you and push you towards the edge, there were more than a handful of times that I had to stop to steady myself and/or wait for the wind to die down before I could continue. I am so grateful I have no fear of heights and I can't imagine what it would have felt like had I needed to deal with that also. I walked much of the route with Peter Phillips, from Milford Haven, and we seemed to deal with the situation in a similar way. He however had a dodgy knee to contend with on top of the weather.

I have no idea how long it took us to get to the summit but I suspect it was around 2.5-3hrs and the cafe was confirmation that we'd almost made it. 

Only a quick jaunt around the corner and we were soon stood over the distance dial celebrating our achievement. A few bottles of beer and a pie had managed to also make it to the summit and Emyr Lewis tracked down a bottle opener so that we could have a celebratory sip . . . pah who needs Mumm when you've got Real Ale!

Colin Charvis, Paul Thorburn and Bleddyn Bowen braved the sub zero temperatures for a quick pic:

Here's the evidence that I made it to the Summit of Snowdon, in terrible conditions but with a lovely bottle of Up and Over :D

The bottle was passed around and Colin was rather impressed by the nicely chilled beer!

After a quick bite to eat I resumed my tortoise technique for the descent. I often find the descent tougher than the climb as your knees take a bit of a battering. We took it easy and were pleasantly rewarded with some nicer weather as we reached lower ground. We even spotted, what Madeleine Brindley declared to be, a Welsh Mountain Goat and her kid - there was no arguing with that; factually correct for an astute journalist ;) You can read Madeleine's account of the walk here btw.

When we reached the base, to find our fellow walkers waiting patiently, we were all suitably tired, wet and somehow elated. The conditions were tough but I loved every minute of it. I wish I was able to recount the banter between the players and the shared experiences and chats along the way. I guess I'll leave that to likes of Madeline and Mark.

We finished with some team shots and then set off on the next little hurdle, a 4 hour drive back to South Wales :(

Challenge number two complete and my mind started to focus on the 15 miles and 2 peaks that I would need to climb in 3 days time; doubt started to creep into my thoughts for the first time. I quickly decided that there was no point worrying about the unknown and instead planned what I needed to do to give myself the best chance. That started with a soak in a hot bath to help my muscles recover from summiting Wales highest mountain :^D

(PS Many thanks to Ben Evans, of Huw Evans Picture Agency, for sending me some photos to include on this blog. The photos of me walking and the group infront of The White Lion and at the end of our walk are all Ben's photos.)

BBC cover the Brains SA Captains Climb training session to the summit of Yr Wyddfa / Snowdon

BBC Wales Reporter, Matthew Richards, joins us in the Car Park at Pen Y Pass (Nr Llanberis) at the base of Snowdon to cover the training session and to interview some of the players. Look who pops up in the back ground :D

Click the photo below to see the full report:

 
During the report Huw Evans sums things up neatly for me, what we endured on Snowdon does not compare to what Cancer patients go through during treatment. Coincidently, approx. three quarters of the way up, I had the exact same thought and shared it with fellow West Walian Peter Phillips.

Huw also reminded us that this challenge is twofold; even though there will be a lot of fun along the way we are all participating for very serious reasons. Huw is passionate about getting the message across that we need to raise these funds to give the medical specialists, Velindre, a chance of improving patient care and make further inroads into fighting this disease. This event will also help raise awareness that lung cancer is not isolated to smokers and an increasing number of non-smokers are diagnosed every year. 

I will post the full article on summiting Snowdon walk asap, keep your eyes open.

Dinner with Scott Quinnell? Here's how you can get tickets (Scott's twitter account @ScottQuinnell )

The evening's highlights include a four Course Dinner, Scott Quinnell public speaking and a fantastic auction

Menu

Starter
Smoked bacon and lentil soup served with crusty bread
Tuna Nicoise Salad
 
Main Course
Chicken breast stuffed with portabello mushrooms and a red wine sauce
Braised Rump of beef with a stilton sauce
Stuffed Peppers

Dessert
Raspberry pavlova
Apple and blackberry torte
Carmarthenshire Welsh Ice Cream with fresh chocolate sauce
 
To Finish
Costa Filter Coffee

£25.00pp

Please contact The Thomas Arms for tickets on 01554 772043 or book by e-mail  thomasarms@sabrain.com

Scott Quinnell shows Soccer AM's Tubes not to mess with the big man!

 

 

Colin Charvis helps Velindre raise £9k for Velindre's Stepping Stones Appeal

 
On the eve of the Wales V Scotland 2010 Six Nations Match I attended a Rugby Gala in aid of the Stepping Stones Appeal. Brains had a table at the event and one of my colleagues, Wayne Jones, was the winner of the Heads & Tails competition. We were all asked to stand up and choose heads (hands on your head) or Tails (hands 'behind your back'). I went out with the first flip of the coin but Wayne stuck in there until the end to win a bottle of champagne.

Wayne is also to thank for arranging for this photo to be taken with one of the 15 Welsh Captains that I will join on Kili, Colin Charvis. It was good to have a quick chat about training, equipment, hopes and fears and reassuring to find out that our thoughts aren't too far apart from each other.

The evening also saw some incredible sporting memorabilia come under the hammer, many going for prices in excess of £500 each. Winning bidders were able to take home items such as a signed Mike Tyson boxing glove, a signed Barbarians v Australia rugby jersey, a signed portrait photo of undefeated world champion Joe Calzaghe, as well as signed jerseys from rugby legends such as Gareth Edwards, Rob Jones, Martyn Williams and Shane Williams.

Our compere for the evening was Huw Llewellyn Davies who guided us through the evening's activities with the highlight being a Q&A session with Colin Charvis, Adrian Hadley and Velindre Patron Brynmor Williams.

Towards the end of the evening I was touched to find out that Brains' guests on that evening, Tesco, had pledged £2000 towards our fundraising, which gives us a massive boost towards our target. Remember to check out Up and Over, the Brains SA Captains Climb charity beer, which is only available in Welsh Tesco Supermarkets.