This
Songkran (
Thai New Year) I will be
running a race to raise funds on behalf of ACLS CMU (
https://www.facebook.com/aclscmu/) who provide
CPR training for professionals and lay people in Chiang Mai and across Thailand.
The Appeal
I hope to raise
35,000 baht ($1000 USD) which will provide training for 35 individuals.
The potential lives saved is exponential from that number.
Why Support My Cause?
Worldwide,
17.3 million people die of Heart Diseases each year, and that figure is expected to grow to more than
23.6 million by 2030. A heart attack can occur at any time, and those treated by emergency medical services have a
10.6% survival rate. Those receiving immediate treatment from bystanders have a
31.4% chance of surviving (
https://www.heart.org/idc/groups/ahamah-public/@wcm/@sop/@smd/documents/downloadable/ucm_470704.pdf).
I hope you will agree this is a
good cause,
contribute, and also
seek CPR training yourselves.
The Target
My aim is to raise
35,000 baht, although i'd gladly receive more than that! Thailand is still a developing country, as much it pains us to accept. The standard of living has improved vastly over the last two decades,
but there still isn't enough money to go around.
To give you some idea, some local villagers can see a doctor for
30 baht per visit (less than $1); fully trained doctors might earn
$30,000 per year, but that is 1/5th of the average salary of a doctor in the West who'll take home around
$150,000 per year. As it happens, nurses in Thailand -- who all do a sterling, life-saving job -- only earn around
$5000 per year, or £4000.
There just isn't enough money to go around.
I'll accept donations from as low as
10 baht per kilometer (100 baht minimum),
but the more you give, the faster I'll run!
The Challenge
It might not seem much, but
Doi Suthep is a mountain. It has an elevation gain of
1,676 metres (5,499 ft). I've walked up it every year for the past five years with my students; and I also sometimes scoot up the side using the '
Monk's Trail' -- about
2 hours, and pretty strenuous on the knees!
But I've never ran it. This race will be 5km up and -- if I make it -- 5km back down. 10.5km total... Not only that, but did I mention this race will be during
Songkran?
Songkran is the hottest time of year in Thailand, when the sun passes directly over the country on it's way to hit the Tropic of Cancer (check your geography textbooks guys). Average temperatures at this time are around
38 degrees celsius (100 F) during the day, and
27 degrees celsius (80 F) at night.
That's why everyone usually splashes water during the Songkran festival (
http://www.bangkok.com/magazine/songkran-guide.htm#).
This year, I want to put something into the community. I'll be running the race at
8pm. There is no wind or rain in Chiang Mai at that time, so expect oven-like temperatures. I'll also be joined by around
3000 other contestants.
Running up down a mountain at night in tropical heat?
If none of this sounds like a good reason to raise money for charity, I don't know what is!
PLEASE SUPPORT MY CAUSE
