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Trio to scale UK’s highest peaks for baby loss charity
Three men are gearing up to climb the UK’s highest mountains and cycle nearly 200 miles coast-to-coast to raise money for charity.
On Friday, friends Matt Roberts, Laith Hofayz and Jack Roberts will take on a five-day challenge, including marathon-long mountain hikes, cycling, and swimming to raise money for baby loss charity SANDS.
The challenge is run by 100 Strong, a Bristol-based not-for-profit which Roberts, from Bradley Stoke, set up in 2019.
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100 Strong have competed several fundraising charity events – photo: Matt Roberts
Speaking to Bristol24/7, Roberts said: “I started doing these challenges as a way to cope with a lot of trauma I was going through, and to channel it into something positive.”
This mammoth event, ‘Challenge X: The Wave of Light’, is the group’s tenth fundraising endeavour.
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Starting in the town of Buckie, Scotland, the group will swim in the North Sea before cycling to the Cairngorm mountains.
There, they will climb five peaks, all over 4,000ft high, in a hike amounting to almost the length of a marathon.
After completing the first leg, they then plan to cycle on to Fort William, climbing another four peaks, including Ben Nevis.
From there, the trio will continue to cycle to Arisaig beach, where they will swim out to the finish line in the Atlantic Ocean.
At the end of the five-day challenge, on October 15, 100 Strong will head to Snowdon to take part in the Wave of Light.
Roberts, who has previously set a world record for climbing the highest peaks in the nations of England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales and Northern Ireland and cycling between them, explained that he didn’t originally plan to do a challenge this year.
Matt Roberts climbed five national peaks in 2023 – photo: Matt Roberts
Earlier this year, Roberts’ family experienced a heartbreaking miscarriage, motivating him to “channel the hurt into something”.
He told Bristol24/7 that he had shared his idea with Hofayz, a marathon runner and friend, not knowing that his family had also struggled with baby loss.
“It’s not something that you talk about very much”, said Roberts, “particularly as men.
“We’ve known each other for the best part of the decade and I’d never even known they’d been through it too”.
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Speaking to Bristol24/7, Hofayz said: “Once I’d heard who it was raising money for, I was all in.
“SANDS do such incredible work providing resources and help to people struggling with baby loss, and they make such a real difference in people’s lives.
“We want to raise as much awareness for them as possible, and help support the work they’re doing”.
Roberts added: “This challenge is by far the biggest thing we’ve ever done, and to do it to raise funds for a cause so close to our hearts is incredible.”
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There is a whole team of volunteers behind 100 Strong’s challenge, including support drivers, kit suppliers and a documentary team from Bristol-based company Buzz Media Productions.
“Everyone is so dedicated to this challenge,” said Roberts, “and it just goes to show what a worthwhile cause it is.”
The team have a fundraising target of £20,000, having already raised over £10,000 on their JustGiving page.
Many donations, including bikes for the team, are behind 100 Strong’s challenge – photo: Matt Roberts
They are also encouraging members of the public to get involved.
Alongside donations, 100 Strong are inviting the public to join them on the Snowdon leg of their climb. The team will announce a meeting point on their Instagram page, beginning their climb at 4.50pm on October 15.
Planning to reach the summit just before 7pm, they will join Sands’ Wave of Light movement, lighting a specially designed candle on the peak of Snowdon.
Main photo: Matt Roberts
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