Apr 10 2008
Blind marathon runner set for fourth run
BLIND marathon runner Dave Heeley was today setting off on his fourth of seven marathons after flying into Australia. Father-of-three Dave Heeley, of Oak Road, West Bromwich, is aiming to become the first disabled man to complete the amazing 7/7/7 challenge – seven marathons on seven continents in seven days.
He has already completed marathons on the Falkland Islands, in Rio de Janeiro and Los Angeles.
Today the 50 year-old was running marathon number four in Sydney before moving onto Dubai and Tunis and finishing his challenge with the London Marathon on Sunday.
An emotional Dave spoke to his wife Debbie last night back home in West Bromwich.
Debbie said: "I was surprised to hear from him because I thought he was still in the air en route from LA to Sydney, but he rang me at about 9.30 last night - it was 6.30 am in Sydney, which is nine hours in front of us.
"Dave said he was feeling a bit sore but was able to cope and is still confident he can complete this challenge.
"He was very emotional on the first three marathons - a combination of tiredness and the enormity of what he was trying to achieve.
"He was also under a great deal of pressure but if Dave says he is going to do something he usually does and I have every faith in him."
Debbie said she had some strong adhesive tape handy to put over her husband's mouth if he ever came up with such a "hare-brained" idea again.
"I don't think I could cope with something like this again, never mind Dave," she added.
Dave, who is hoping to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds for the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, is running with his guide runner Malcolm Mad Mac Carr.
His children Georgie-Lee, aged six, and four-year-old Dannie, are tracking his progress across the globe along with fellow pupils at Guns Village primary school in West Bromwich,
http://www.birminghammail.net/news/top-stories/2008/04/10/blind-marathon-runner-set-for-fourth-run-97319-20745013/
