Sky Sports man urging Gainsborough folk to sign up for Parkinson's walk

People in Gainsborough are being asked to join others from across Lincolnshire in picking up the pace against Parkinson's.

This year’s Walk for Parkinson’s is at Burghley House on Sunday, October 1.

The walk is one of a series of events to be held across the UK for Parkinson’s UK during 2017.

And people from Gainsborough are being asked to sign up now to take part.

Walk for Parkinson’s offers the opportunity for people of all ages and abilities to get involved in a fun and active day out, while helping the charity step ever closer to a cure.

There are a range of distances around the grounds on offer to suit everyone, including a one-mile, three-mile and a 10-mile route.

Last year, 188 people took part in the walk at Burghley House, raising £20,327 between them, and the charity hopes to boost the fundraising total even more this year.

Parkinson’s is a degenerative neurological condition, for which there currently is no cure.

The main symptoms of the condition are tremor, slowness of movement and rigidity.

Every hour, someone in the UK is told they have Parkinson’s and the condition affects 127,000 people in the UK - which is around one in 500 of the population.

Dave Clark, Sky Sports presenter and champion of Walking for Parkinson’s UK, is encouraging as many people as possible to step up at the event.

Dave was diagnosed with Parkinson’s himself in 2011.

He said: “In 2016 I completed my own 200-mile coast to coast walk for Parkinson’s UK.

“It was tough but the sense of achievement when I crossed the finish line was fantastic.

“I know not everyone can walk that far, which is why our Walk for Parkinson’s at Burghley House, with a choice of distances, is perfect for everyone.

“This year is going to be our most ambitious year yet for the Walk for Parkinson’s series.

“With every pound that we raise we get closer to a cure. So please join us at Burghley House and help us step closer to our goal of improving the lives of every person affected by Parkinson’s.”

The registration fee is £10 for adults and £5 for under 16s.

Everyone who registers will receive a free Parkinson’s UK t-shirt, fundraising pack and at the end of the walk, a finishers medal.

The charity is hoping to raise more than £400,000 from the 32 events, so suggests walkers aim to raise at least £50.

All money raised from walk at Burghley House will help Parkinson’s UK’s work to provide support and information for people affected by Parkinson’s and to help find better treatments, and ultimately a cure.

As well as walkers, the charity is on the look-out for volunteers to help register people at the start and finish area or to be a walk marshal at various points on the route during the day.

To find out more and to sign up to walk or volunteer visit the website at www.parkinsons.org.uk/walkburghleyhouse, call 0207 9639367 or email [email protected]

For a full list of the 32 locations in the Walk for Parkinson’s series, visit www.parkinsons.org.uk/walks