A new feature whereATT journalist Andy Forsyth reflects on life. This time, he’s reflecting on an extraordinary few months, from a memorable Countdown appearance to completing his toughest fundraising challenge yet for About the Town.
The past few months have been a whirlwind of excitement, nerves, pride and emotion – a journey I never could have imagined.
After years of wondering “what if?” I finally auditioned for Countdown and soon found myself filming at Dock10 Studios in Salford. As only the second person from Skelmersdale to compete, it was an incredible experience. I won my first two games 104-64 and 82-58, before securing a nail-biting victory in game three, solving the deciding Conundrum WHIRLPOOL to win 77-74. Sadly, I narrowly lost my fourth game 72-69, but despite this I’ll always treasure the memories and my Countdown winner’s teapot.
And then if that wasn’t daunting enough, I took on my biggest challenge yet: a gruelling 24-hour cardio challenge at GymWorks to raise £2,000 for About the Town.
I’m used to endurance challenges, having done 20,000 and 40,000 Metre Ski/Row challenges, and the 100 Miles in November – The Wheelie Big Push.
Rotating between the SkiErg, Rower and Assault Bike, I was ready for a demanding and brutal battle. One thing is for sure: stopping and giving up are not phrases that you will find in my vocabulary.
“When my body wanted to stop, the support around me gave me the strength to carry on.”
I only had one aim in mind: To get through those 24 hours. My motivation? About the Town, Bev, our team, our community. Nothing was going to stop me.
And to top it off, although I didn’t quite reach my target of £2,000, I raised an incredible £1,600!
If these two experiences have taught me anything, it’s that I am physically and mentally stronger than I thought, I am resilient, and quite simply… I am off my head! But it was worth it all!