A grieving husband has set himself the challenge of running 1,000 miles in ten weeks in memory of of his "bright and bubbly" wife who he said was a "super teacher".
Dave Collett plans to run from Land's End, in Cornwall, to John o'Groats in Scotland and is giving himself just ten weeks to complete the huge trek.
Starting on July 3 he is planning to run at least 15 miles per day, reported YorkshireLive.
Dave, from Shibden, Halifax, has already raised close to £2,500 for the Overgate Hospice in Elland, and will be running in memory of his late wife Deborah who sadly died last year at the age of 55.
Paying an emotional tribute to Deborah, Dave said: "She was re-diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014. She battled on bravely and took any sort of chemical or drug that they could find to stem the flow, but she sadly lost her battle.
"She was a school teacher, but she got into teaching late. She got a first-class degree from the University of Bradford at the age of 40. It was her vocation - she was a super teacher. The kids loved her and her colleagues did too."
Dave described Deborah as "bright, bubbly and full of life," while also being someone who "loved to talk".
He said: "It was Deborah who got me into running. She used to do the Race for Life and she signed me up for the London Marathon in 2018 where we raised £12,000 for charity."
The 59-year-old is now an avid runner and completed the Manchester Marathon in an impressive time of three hours and 28 minutes last year.
"That qualified me for the Boston Marathon which I did in April," he said.
"It was a fabulous route and I did that in three hours and 45 minutes. I have had to teach myself to run slower as I'm doing 15 miles per day on this run. The maximum I will do is 20.4 miles."
Dave, who joined his local running club the Northowram Pumas in 2017, turns 60 on August 5 and is planning to run through Halifax on the day of his birthday as he makes his way north.
The dad-of-three has meticulously planned his route and will be running through some of the places he has always wanted to visit.
"I have picked some nice routes," he said. "I thought I would be doing a lot more road running, but I'll be spending a lot of time on canal banks etc. There's some places in there that I wanted to go to. I'm calling it the scenic route!"
Dave will also be taking part in ten 'park runs' along the way.
The 59-year-old said he is hoping to raise as much money as possible for the Overgate Hospice as the charity has helped members of his family and some of his friends through difficult times.
He said: "The first choice was for Deborah to be at home when she passed, and she got that, but the alternative would have been to go to Overgate. It's a good cause."
Dave will set off from Land's End on July 3 and hopes to reach John o'Groats in the far north of Scotland within ten weeks. You can find out more about Dave's route, or donate to his fundraising page, here.
