Triathlon challenge in aid of teacher’s father (From Craven Herald)

Bentham woman's sprint marathon fundraiser

4:00pm Monday 17th September 2012 in News By Daryl Ames

A Bentham woman will compete in a sprint triathlon challenge to raise money for a charity that researches a progressive disease that has afflicted her father.

Teacher Corinth Blackwell is set to take part in the Kendal Sprint Triathlon next Saturday, September 23 to raise funds for the Motor Neurone Disease Association.

Mrs Blackwell is seeking to raise awareness of motor neurone disease, which affects one in about every 50,000 people in the UK.

Her father, Richard Dutton, was diagnosed with the condition, a progressive neurological disorder that causes the muscles to waste away, in November 2010.

Mrs Blackwell said: “It’s a horrible disease with no known cure that causes people to lose the ability to walk, talk, breathe and eat. A person can become trapped in their body, yet fully be aware of everything going on around them.

“Right now my dad has slurred speech, can’t use his hands and is struggling to walk, and although my family has finally accepted that he has this condition, we want to do whatever we can to make his life as easy as possible.”

Mrs Blackwell, who will do a 500m swim, 18km bike ride and 5km run, has been training for the triathlon since March.

“Before I started, I couldn’t even run one minute without getting exhausted,” she said. “Now I can do 30 minutes non-stop. I’ve also been cycling around Gisburn Forest to prepare, but it’s when you put all three disciplines together when it suddenly gets a lot harder.”

Mrs Blackwell has just started a new job as a geography teacher at a school in Preston, but had previously worked at Aireville School in Skipton .

And she is grateful to the students at Aireville, who raised more than £400 for the charity by holding a non-uniform day in July.

Anyone who wants to make a donation on behalf or Mrs Blackwell can visit justgiving.com/Andy-Cori-James-Triathlon.