Marathon men ready for 24-hour Wollaston run in aid of headteacher's cancer battle fund

The #ForMrBailey campaign has seen more than £48,000 raised in just over a fortnight.
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A pair of super-fit runners will be pounding the highways and byways of Wollaston this weekend on a 24-hour mega marathon for charity.

Jason French from Wollaston and Earls Barton's John Wayland, 44, are taking part in a huge fundraising effort to help Northampton headteacher Chris Bailey in his fight against cancer.

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Chris was told he had stage four pancreatic cancer in October and he and his family set up a JustGiving page with a goal of £50,000 to help battle the disease.

The duo, who are members of Wellingborough and District Athletic Club, will attempt to complete five marathons, only stopping for five minutes per hour for a brief break.

Jason, 39, who is a construction consultant, said: "Our aim is to complete five marathosn and make it to 130 miles.

"We're both fit. We both do marathons and half-marathons and John does Iron Man events but we've never done anything like this before.

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"Because we can't meet in each other's homes we've kindly been allowed to use the church hall next to my house as a base.

John Wayland and Jason FrenchJohn Wayland and Jason French
John Wayland and Jason French

"For five minutes every hour we'll take on food and drink, and for a change of running gear - which can chafe if it gets sweaty. I've got 15 pairs of trainers on standby but I'll probably only use three pairs."

Starting at dusk on Saturday at 4pm, the pair will run loops around Wollaston in their distinctive purple running tops in support of the Pancreatic Cancer Action campaign.

Dozens of events will be held on Saturday, November 21 under the banner of #ForMrBailey - a massive fundraising drive to help headteacher Chris and his young family.

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Across the county people will take on a fitness challenge centred around the number 24 including John and Jason's friend Stuart Hacker who is Chris's brother-in-law.

Chris Bailey and his daughter IvyChris Bailey and his daughter Ivy
Chris Bailey and his daughter Ivy

Stuart and his two daughters will swim a mile every hour for 24 hours at Brixworth's Swimcube.

He said: "Chris is one of the kindest people you could ever meet and the support has been amazing. He really is a wonderful guy."

Northamptonshire's residents are being asked to get involved this Saturday under the hashtag #ForMrBailey, where they can donate or take on challenges themselves.

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In an online video on November 12, Chris, who is the headteacher of the juniors at Northampton High School, said: "This is just a brief message to say thank you all for your massive fundraising efforts. Your creativity and ingenuity has no bounds. Me and my family are overwhelmed with what you've been doing."

How to support the campaignHow to support the campaign
How to support the campaign

John, who is headteacher of Grendon Primary School, said: "We know how important it will be for Chris and his family to feel the support of his community and how much of a boost it will give them to know that friends, family, acquaintances and complete strangers are out running, walking, cycling and swimming for him on the November 21.

"We didn’t hesitate to get involved and are stepping well out of our comfort zone with this challenge."

Jason added: "We don't know Chris but we want to help him and his wife and family as much as possible. It must awful for them. It is a horrible situation for them to be in and that's what will keep us going.

"We'd like to thank the guys from our running club who have given us advice on endurance events."

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