Kate's duathlon to raise funds in memory of Bosco and Brie
16 October 2016
Early mornings and achy muscles did nothing to dissuade Kate Murchington, who decided to take on a gruelling duathlon challenge to raise vital funds for Cats Protection’s North Birmingham branch.
The event took place on Sunday 16th October. Kate, 29, lined up alongside 20,000 others for the Great Birmingham Run in the city centre. But unlike most of the runners, when Kate crossed the finish line 13.1 miles later, she didn't head for a hot shower and a pub lunch. Instead she got on her bike to cycle 12.1 miles to Handsworth Park, where she finished her marathon distance event with another mile on foot around the boating lake. SHe's pictured here at the end of her challenge with her GBR medal and a well-earned bottle of bubbly!
Kate – who lives in Handsworth Wood and works as a Practice Secretary at Karis Medical Centre – set herself the challenge in memory of two of her cats, Brie and Bosco. They were adopted with their sister Brooke from Cats Protection in 2009, but have since passed away.
Bosco developed breathing difficulties while Kate and Andrew were on holiday in Crete celebrating their wedding anniversary. Kate's parents got him the best possible veterinary care but despite everyone's best efforts they had to make the hard decision to have Bosco put to sleep.
One night a few months later, Bosco's sister Brie had to be taken to emergency vets after they discovered her apparently having been hit by a car. She had suffered a saddle thrombus and their only option was to peacefully put her to sleep.
Finding solace in running
Devastated after the loss of Bosco, Kate began exercising as a distraction method to cope with his death. She wanted to turn her sadness into something positive to help Cats Protection, so she decided to push herself further than a standard half marathon. She added her own twist, turning her challenge into a three-part running and cycling event totalling over 26 miles.
Despite a leg injury in the spring that set her training back by a couple of months, Kate was in excellent shape for the event.
Kate said: “I’m a great supporter of the North Birmingham branch of Cats Protection and after two of my own cats passed away I wanted to help raise money in their memory. The branch does a great job of caring for cats, as I’ve seen first-hand. Taking on this challenge is an excellent way to help raise much-needed funds to support their important neutering, homing and education programmes.”
Denise Atkins, Branch Coordinator of Cats Protection’s North Birmingham branch said: “We are so grateful for the support we’re receiving from Kate. Her efforts will make a great difference to local cats."
Kate's is very close to reaching her fundraising target of £500, which will go to help the North Birmingham branch of Cats Protection. To help nudge her past the target, visit Kate's Just Giving page.
Kate and Andrew now have four cats – remaining sibling Brooke, plus new kittens Pepper, Coco and their mother Missy who Kate rescued from a neighbour’s garden this year.
Find out about Cats Protection's Grief Support service.