Steve’s The BIG 50 Challenge: Yay I did it! 🧡 🙏 👨🏻‍🦯

Hi Fitblitzers

This morning everything aches. Stairs are now a tactical exercise. Sitting down is fine. Standing back up requires prayer and leverage. Yesterday i completed my ‘Steve’s The BIG 50‘ challenge…And it wasn’t just about distance, it was a fundraiser for the MS Society, and in memory of my mum.

---

Why 50 Matters…

My mum died at 50 because of Multiple Sclerosis. MS took her mobility long before it took her life. I grew up watching a strong woman gradually lose the ability to walk. To move freely. To trust her own body. Yesterday I walked 50 kilometres at 50 years old — something she was never physically able to do because of MS.

By mid-afternoon, when my hips were burning and my feet felt like they’d been introduced to a cheese grater, I reminded myself that this pain is chosen, this pain is temporary…For thousands living with MS, the limitations are not. That perspective changes how I’ve endured this challenge.

---

The Hardest Thing I’ve Ever Done

This was the hardest physical challenge I’ve ever taken on…

11 hours moving.
Over 2,200 feet of elevation.
30.37 miles recorded before my watch shut down just before the finish. Yes, the watch quit…I didn’t, I walked the final 0.7 miles hand in hand with my lovely Wife Sarah.

At 50, eleven hours of constant impact leaves a mark. Today my legs feel every mile. My back is stiff and my feet are tender…But I didn’t collapse.

---

The Battle Most People Didn’t See

I had never encountered so many cyclists, runners, dog walkers, and entire family convoys walking three abreast across the full width of the trail. When you’re blind, that’s not an inconvenience, It’s cognitive load.

Every approaching voice requires processing. Every bike needs direction tracking. Every dog lead is a potential hazard. Every blocked path demands spatial recalculation. For eleven hours…By late afternoon yesterday, the mental fatigue was as real as the physical fatigue. This wasn’t just a leg test. It was a neurological endurance test.

---

The F1 Pit stops

Now let’s talk about the quiet hero of yesterday, My lovely Wife Sarah. She was extraordinary. Every lap I came in, she was waiting like an F1 pit crew.

• Water flasks refilled.
• Chocolate Hobnob tubs jammed full.
  Sausage roll handed over for pit stop fuel.
• Hug, kiss and words of encouragement.
  Minimal delay and back out!

Fast. Slick and Efficient. ❤️

---

Lap 5 – Sunshine & The Mosh Pit

On lap five, Sarah and her brother Marshall were waiting at Sarah’s Sunshine Bench (her donation marker on the trail). Marshall (the man behind Marshall’s Mosh Pit marker) was there too. They met me at the bench and we walked a short stretch together before they peeled away so I could stay in rhythm, they didn’t want to disturb the zombie stagger too much, lol.

---

The Bigger Picture

This wasn’t about proving I’m tough…It was about honouring my mum Valerie, and raising funds for the MS Society. When it hurt…Especially when it hurt, I remembered that… Temporary pain is not the same as permanent limitation. If this challenge helps raise funds for the MS Society, If it supports research, If it moves us even slightly closer to treatments that spare other families what ours endured…Then every step was worth it.

---

Thank you 🙏 🧡 

I have to say thank you to God. Truly. There were moments yesterday (especially in the later laps) where strength felt borrowed rather than generated. Where steadiness wasn’t just physical but spiritual. I don’t take that lightly. 

And to every single person who donated and placed a motivation GPS marker on the trail (when your names were spoken in my ear as I passed them), it genuinely felt like you were there. Like you’d stepped onto the path and were walking alongside me, offering encouragement stride for stride. Those markers weren’t just fundraising ideas. They were fuel. Presence. Momentum. You carried me further than you probably realise.

Today

---

Today I’m under strict orders to stay off these battered feet, so I’m parked in my chair typing this out. Every part of me has clocked the mileage…Feet, ankles, knees, hips, back, even my neck is chiming in. 11 hours on trail leaves a signature. So instead of pretending I’m indestructible, I’m doing the smart thing: recovery mode, front of the computer, reliving yesterday one stiff keystroke at a time. 😀 

The ‘Steve’s The BIG 50‘ challenge wasn’t just about distance…It was about perspective, about using what I still have…It was about legacy!

---

My JustGiving page

And if you’ve followed this whole slightly mad adventure, cheered from the sidelines, or just enjoyed picturing me negotiating stairs like a malfunctioning robot this morning… the fundraising page is still open until 30th May 2026. The walk may be done, but the mission isn’t. If you’ve been meaning to donate, this is your nudge. Every pound goes toward research, support, and real progress for families living with MS. Let’s not let the momentum stop at the finish line. If 50km at 50 proved anything, it’s that forward movement matters…So let’s keep moving. 🧡 DONATE HERE 🧡