A YOUNG Inwardleigh runner has been thanked for his fundraising efforts which have boosted the Devon Air Ambulance fund by £2,000.
Andy Vallance, 20, ran the London Marathon last year for the first time and intended to raise £500 but the generosity of local people and firms has enable him to well exceed his target.
Following a presentation of the money at the Crossways Inn, Follygate last week, Devon air ambulance representative Howard Hayter said the charity was extremely grateful to Andy, particularly as it had involved so much hard work and graft.
'If it were not for people like Andrew the air ambulance would not be flying,' he said. 'We are extremely grateful to him and all the people who kindly sponsored him.'
Andy, who works as a water buffalo herdsman near Holsworthy, started training four months before the big event and believes all the running up and down hills around Dartmoor made the event easier than he thought it would be.
'London is completely flat — there was not a single hill in the whole race,' he said. 'By the end of the race I was feeling fine and sprinted the last 400 metres. I could not believe it,' he said.
'The only disappointment was finishing in three hours and 39 minutes I think I could have done it in a quicker time.'
Such is the demand to take part in the London Marathon that only one in four of the 160,000 who apply get in.
Unfortunately the runner has not been successful this year but plans to take part again in 2001 with his girlfriend Lita Meardon.
'It's an unbelievable feeling finishing a race like that,' added Andy. 'The adrenaline was flowing so much that for about an hour and a half afterwards I could have burst into tears.'
Getting support for his chosen charity was not difficult because of local support for the air ambulance.
'A lot of people gave more than they intended to because it was the Devon Air Ambulance,' he said.
'Fifteen local companies sponsored me at about £50 each and I collected a lot of money in local pubs and post offices around the area.'
Andy said he had played a lot of rugby and seen the air ambulance come to the rescue of many players.
'Being so close to Dartmoor I see the air ambulance as a necessary part of the countryside,' he added.