A HUGE success — that was the verdict after hundreds of people from across West Devon braved the weather in Okehampton last Sunday to raise thousands of pounds for Sport Relief. Tens of thousands of people across the country took part in the ultimate Sport Relief challenge — the Sport Relief Mile. Okehampton College was the venue for West Devon's mile and more than 650 runners, with many more spectators, all contributed to make it a fantastic fun-filled fundraising feast. The exact total of money raised specifically by the Okehampton mile is, as yet, unknown, although the organisers believe it is somewhere in the region of £10,000 and £12,000 — a staggering total for the town. Of this total, £1,400 was raised on the day itself, when a huge variety of runners and walkers took to the grounds of Okehampton College and Simmons Park to make their own contributions to the vital work that Sport Relief does in the UK and abroad. Organiser Dave Hocking said: 'I'm absolutely thrilled with it. 'The day seemed to go quickly and I'm delighted with the amount of people who turned up, it was a day full of laughter and fun. 'It's very important for people to get out and about and go to these things, it was completely inspirational. 'There was an old lady who had watched the Sport Relief programme on Friday night and decided to do the mile. 'She struggled the route with her two walking sticks. 'One of the marshals helped her through some mud and told her she could cut across the firmer ground but she said to him, "No, I couldn't cheat." 'She raised more than £50 on the day. It's wonderful and quite emotional.' The young, the old, the three-legged, the five- legged, people in fancy dress, people in pushchairs and wheelchairs, a donkey, a Golden Eagle — each and every person who took part did so with a smile on their face. Stuart Lord from OCRA, who helped run the event, added: 'It was fantastic, great to see so many smiling faces and to see such diversity in the people getting involved. 'There were young kids being pushed in prams, older people with walking sticks and people in wheelchairs. 'Each person looked on it as an individual challenge and that was a great thing for them. 'It showed that people are really up for these events and will come out to support the community and create a good, fun atmosphere.' One of the oldest people to do the mile was 83 year old Tom Endacott. Tom took part in the three mile event armed with his walking stick and had raised close to £200. On the other end of the scale, 13-month-old Jack Granger, who only learned to walk two weeks ago, did his best to stagger through the mud and complete the mile long course — helped along by his mum and dad. The day saw runners set off at 11am, noon, 1pm and 2pm. There were a host of stalls from different organisations for people to view including OCRA, Dartmoor Search and Rescue, Okeford Vets, Brownies and Guides, Fairtrade, Okehampton Air Cadets, the National Trust, Cats Protection and RAPID UK. One of the highlights was falconer Jonathan Marshall, who completed the mile in under ten minutes with his 10 lbs Golden Eagle, Samson, perched on his forearm. Okehampton mayor Tony Leech, who took part in the first mile with his wife Sue, said: 'I thought it went very well and it's absolutely brilliant how much money was raised. 'I'm glad I did the first mile before the course got too muddy and I thoroughly enjoyed it. 'It's a great event for charity and a great thing for Okehampton. I'm glad so many people of the town got involved.' Okehampton county councillor, Christine Marsh, another mile runner who was lost for words when the total raised by Okehampton was announced to her, said: 'It's excellent, absolutely stunning. 'It was a brilliant advert for the people of Okehampton who have proved their unparalleled generosity once again. 'I think something like Sport Relief brings everyone back to earth and makes you question where your priorities lie in such a materialistic society. 'It goes to show what can be achieved when people unite together under one banner to do whatever they can to help people less fortunate than themselves.' At the time of going to press, the Sport Relief grand total stood at £20,747,375 — an astonishing total. Organiser Dave Hocking would like to extend special thanks to the following who all helped to make the day such a success: the army cadets, Sergeant Emma Penny, Daryll Chapman, Christine Marsh, Okehampton Charities Trust, the people who registered the runners, the Whitely family, Janet Forbister, Sue Clements, Kim Wild, Pam, Steve and Gary Sizmur, Stuart Lord, Emma the warm up girl, Alison Hocking, Alan King, the different charities that turned up to support Sport relief, Jonathan Marshall, Paul Smith and the Big Band, Corin Russell, the Wren Trust, the Tremaine family, the Okehampton Times and all the runners who turned out. For any one who enjoyed being active on the day, they can follow this up by finding out about OCRA's '5x30 more active, more often' campaign that offers information about exercise, activities and events that are taking place in and around Okehampton. OCRA can be contacted on 01837 54546 or 07967179662.
