Four men and their dog went to cross a country

Aster the dog will lead the group on their challenge

Next month a Sales Executive from Heywood, a former British boxing champion, a former award-winning BBC reporter, a Manchester based financial advisor and a Hungarian hunting dog will venture north of the border on a seemingly impossible mission.
Their task is to raise funds for charity by crossing Scotland in under 24 hours. Aster the dog will lead Chris Robinson, who works for Heywood company Flexsys (UK) Ltd, and his friends, ex-ABA British Heavyweight Champ Scott Welch, finance expert Austin Hutchinson and Aster’s keen owner Alistair Macdonald, from east coast to west, over a possible four mountain peaks.

They have taken on the challenge in the hope of raising £25,000 for the Five Stars Scanner Appeal, which will provide a state-of-the-art MRI scanner for the new Manchester Children’s Hospital.

The scanner will help children throughout the North West, and, in special cases, kids from anywhere in the UK. The equipment will reduce the time it takes for a standard scan from 45 minutes to 15.

Specialists will be able to diagnose cancer earlier, so that early treatment can be provided so ultimately the new machine will save lives.

Chris said: “We know this is a serious challenge but nothing like the challenge faced by the children who will make use of the scanner. We hope our small contribution will help to change the lives of many sick children.”

The group have been training for five months in preparation and they are confident that they can complete the challenge in 20 hours, four hours faster than their target time.

The group will start with a 30 mile bike ride from Beauly on the east coast to Glen Affric. They will then walk another thirty miles to the west coast at Loch Duich, with four Munros (Scottish mountains over 3000feet) standing in their path.

As leader of the outfit Aster the dog as her own website, where people can sponsor the team and she has been writing a weekly training blog to keep people up to date.

To show your support visit www.k9c2c.co.uk