Published: Wednesday, 9th July, 2008 12:00
Garry faced a 'mountain' of a challenge
By Nicola Findlay
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Fundraiser Garry managed to climb Ben Nevis four times in 16 hours.
AN INTREPID Tullibody climber battled the unpredictable Scottish weather, hiking up and down Ben Nevis four times in 16 hours.
Garry Somerville (42) was raising money for the Stirling and Clackmannanshire branch of Alzheimer Scotland by attempting to climb the 1344 metre mountain as many times as possible in 24 hours.
Although he is pleased to have raised around £2500 so far for the charity he is disappointed that bad weather prevented him from going further.
“The weather was really bad and although it was dry at the bottom of Ben Nevis it was very wet at the top,” Garry told the Advertiser.
“I started at about 10 in the morning and by the time night came in it was very cloudy and by my last trip up to the top I couldn’t see a thing. It was just too dangerous to carry on.”
Garry prepared for the challenge by climbing up and down Dumyat and running and cycling, and felt he could have easily gone on to beat his friend’s record for the challenge.
“My friend managed to do it six times so I was disappointed I couldn’t beat that,” he said.
“I had really good times and was well ahead of my friend time-wise. I was also still strong both physically and mentally and was gutted that I had to quit because of the weather.”
Despite his disappointment at not being able to carry on Garry said the most important thing is that he has managed to raise so much money for his chosen charity.
He went on, “Alzheimer Scotland is a charity close to my family’s heart as my grandmother suffered from the disease.
“At the end of the day the most important part of the challenge was to raise as much money as possible and also to raise awareness of Alzheimers.”
Garry, who is originally from Inverness, was given plenty of support during his gruelling challenge with his wife Lynda cheering him on with their children Connor and Kirsty.
His mum and dad, who helped him fundraise, also travelled from Inverness to show their support, and some of his work colleagues from First Engineering travelled to Ben Nevis.
“Everyone that came along was great and they were all cheering me on,” said Garry. “It was nice to have so much support and two of my workmates, John Watson and Barry Johnstone, also climbed with me for part of the challenge.”
Garry would also like to thank everyone who sponsored him and all those involved in the fundraising efforts.
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