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Running

An Achilles' tendon injury didn't stop Malcolm McLoughlin's planned run from Mizen to Malin to raise both awareness and funds for Autism earlier this month; it just changed it into a cycle instead!

'Running for Pearl' was always more than just a run for Ferbane native Malcolm; it was for his daughter Pearl, diagnosed Autistic in 2009. The schedule initially planned a six day run ending on July 8, taking in the equivalent of 14 marathons on the way from one end of Ireland to the other. Two hundred kilometres into his mammoth 570km journey however, Malcolm's tendons told him his run was at an end.

"After my injury became too bad we sat in the van for an hour having tea and it hit me," he said. "I'll bike it!" Taking a bike from a crew member who was accompanying him, he cycled the final 410km and finished the entire journey in four days, eight hours and 50 minutes.

Now forced to rest for six weeks at home in France, Malcolm has time to look back on his trip to Ireland with pride. "The run was a great success, even if it was finished on bikes," he said. "I think the comeback and change of plan brought more people on board and eventually gave the people involved a greater interest and a share in the Running for Pearl Foundation. Ultimately I am a bit gutted that I did not run it all as planned, but I would not have changed how it went either.

"The weather was fantastic, the people in every village supported us and a lot of kind people opened their homes to us in true Irish hospitality and I got to see the country in a way that so few get a chance to."

A fundraising gig in Gleeson's of Ferbane on July 10 was a celebratory end to the fundraising drive, and the total raised to date stands at almost €6,000.

Not only did Malcolm unwittingly sacrifice his Achilles' tendon for his cause, he also sacrificed his beard at the pub in Ferbane, to push funds onwards and upwards. Overall, he says he's delighted.

"I am, considering the tough financial climate," he said. The real joy is raising awareness of his daughter's condition. "I am extremely happy with the light it shone on Autism as so many have enquired through the site and with phone calls as to how they can help, or parents asking me about the first steps to take regarding a diagnosis for their own kids. That's the jackpot as far as I am concerned."