A charity challenge like no other - the Hope Alive Tour sees a team of brave runners tread in the footsteps of William Wilberforce in his work to abolish slavery, as they raise funds and awareness for our work against child exploitation in today’s world. Following the success of our 2017 Tour, this month a new team took up the baton to run in a non-stop relay from Hull to Liverpool to Nottingham to Cambridge. Read more to see how the team got on…

ONE DAY TO GO

The team arrive in Hull to a warm welcome from the Wilberforce Institue for the study of Slavery and Emancipation (WISE). Director John Oldfield reminded us of why we are taking on this challenge with a sobering yet illuminating talk on the kind of exploitation children in our world face today.

Then it was off to the Ibis hotel for one last good night’s sleep before the starting line!

DAY ONE

After a strong breakfast to set us off, we make our way back to WISE for John to officially launch the tour. The team take the first steps of the tour together and cross the first milestone as one - The Humber Bridge. Spirits are high as the relay starts and the runners set into their rhythm through the city and into the countryside. The support crew are there to guide the runners and to be on hand in case of any problems - but the runners are supporting each other as well, running together and enjoying the adventure!

We hit our first snag in the afternoon with a punctured bike tyre - and the puncture kit is in the other support vehicle! The team is quick to adapt to the change in routine but it’s definitely a lesson learnt… The resting runners get their first taste of on-the-go food packets prepared by superhost support crew member Sam and a chance to get to know each other better before their first shift of running.

Our trusty mapping app Maverick is working well and we’re following that blue dot all the way to Liverpool!

The team run all through the day to the night. As we approach the Trans Penine Trail, the darkness and conditions of the trail mean the support crew have to decide how to continue along the route.

By 3am we’re back on track and the fun continues - complete with super-safe super-shiny lights!

DAY TWO

A bit of early morning rain isn’t dampening our runners’ spirits as we’re on schedule to reach Liverpool by 11am.

To mark the end of the Hull to Liverpool phase of the tour, we stopped off at St James in the City church, where Michael explained the location's significance in relation to slavery - the church itself was built on blood money and there are 9000 unnamed bodies buried in the ground. The church has many links with global organisation IJM and their fight against modern slavery.

In Hope Alive Tour 2017, the vicar of the church, Neil Short, hosted the team for lunch and curate Jude even joined the team on the run into Liverpool, making this location a significant and special one in the history of the Hope Alive Tour.

Next stop - Nottingham! The runners are working in two groups so half of them can rest, eat, and recover, while the others take turns to run, run, run!

Almost at the halfway mark, we’re eager to get to Nottingham on time the next morning, but for the resting group, there’s always time to squeeze in a quick trip to a McDonald’s or country pub put along the way for recharging (of phones and feet!).

The Hope Alive Tour is not just about running, but about people and being a TEAM. Everyone is rocking their matching Hope Alive Tour t-shirts thanks to the generoristy of Harper Recruitment and looking like a real team, attracting some attention and even donations along the way.

Evening soon approaches and the team are taking on hills, valleys, rain, and the dark to get to Nottingham in time for Beeston parkrun in the morning...

At this point, when it’s dark and rainy, we’re so grateful to everyone spurring us on - your support is keeping us going and we can't wait to see some familiar faces and meet some new ones at the parkrun at the home of Operation Orphan’s head office. As we reach a meeting point for a 4am changeover after a particularly steep and wet stretch, one of the runners comments “it was a hard stretch and I almost wanted to stop and switch near the end - but then I thought of the children and who we’re doing this for, and that helped me find the strength to carry on”.

DAY THREE

As the ran clears up and the sun starts to rise, the team are still smiling with just a few miles to go to Nottingham.

The parkrun team give us a fantastic welcome and the whole team cross the 5km route starting line together. Amazingly, supporters have travelled from all over to run alongside the team, and to shout from the sidelines! It’s a brilliant event and a real landmark in the Tour, and we can’t thank the parkrun team enough for hosting us so well. It’s a big day for running as Kipchoge breaks the two-hour mark in running a marathon, while our very own runners are setting their paces as a team. You can read the parkrun run report from the day here.

Following the parkrun, the team get a quick break at the Boathouse Cafe, and then a chance for a shower and a rest, before visiting the Operation Orphan head office to find out more about the work we do, and talk about the issues vulnerable children in our world face today - and what we can do to help.

Physio Calum is a welcome addition to the team as he volunteers some time to soothe our runners’ aching muscles before they set off on the last leg!

After a send-off from Operation Orphan, by the time evening comes around again the team have made their way through Nottingham and are almost at the next milestone - The King's Arms in Wing for a well-deserved meal before cracking on to Cambridge.

Leaving Wing before midnight with just 50 miles to go by the morning, our team have done an incredible job. Despite the exhaustion, their sense of togetherness and purpose is strong and lovely to see.

DAY FOUR

The race is on to get to the finish line… And when the clock hits midday, that’s Hope Alive Tour 2019 - DONE!

After 72 challenging hours of running, running, and some more running, the team cross the finish line at The King Bill pub in Histon the way they started - together. Making their way through rain and sun, day and night, hills and valleys, the team and have completed their 390 mile journey through cities in the UK with signifance to slavery.

A huge THANK YOU to our amazing running team, and to the fantastic support crew helping them along the way. Every mile is another step towards raising awareness of the issues of trafficking and exploitation faced by children in our world today.

And THANK YOU to you, our lovely supporters for keeping us going! We couldn't have done it without knowing you were with us every step of the way.