A KILWINNING man is set to take on a gruelling 215-mile run across Scotland - in a bid to raise funds for a worth cause.
On August 10, Kevin Brown will be taking on the incredible challenge, seeing him journey from Portpatrick to Cockburnspath, in aid of the Crosshouse Children's Fund.
Despite some monumental fundraising efforts in the past, the 46-year-old has conceded that this will be the "biggest challenge I have ever faced".
With the effort in aid of a vital charity, and some brilliant backing already, Kevin is ready to give it everything he's got.
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He commented: "This will take me past my limits both physically and mentally with a high drop out rate there is no guarantee I will finish.
"What I will guarantee though is I will give my absolute all in this race and knowing now that I am raising funds for a charity that means a lot to me will push me on even more.
"I will be specifically raising for the wellbeing fund. This has been set up to support hospital families and families in the community who have children with complex and long term health conditions financially and to ease the burden of the cost of living crisis.
"I hope people will support me in any way they can think of as when the times comes this is what will spur me on."
Kevin is already on the way to reaching his fundraising goal of £2,500, just over a third of the way at the time of writing.
He has been boosted, in particular, by support from his work at DSM-Firmenich in Dalry and from Irvine-based takeaway Nonna's House.
While this has been a huge source of encouragement as Kevin trains for the race across Scotland, he also has some personal goals spurring him on.
The challenge is one he has had his sights set on for quite some time, after being inspired by his younger brother Scott Brown who he 'crewed' for when he took on the challenge two years ago.
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Kevin explained: "I was really inspired watching it and wondered how it was possible to run such a distance.
"Afterwards I said to Scott I think I would like to try and he said I should absolutely go for it.
"I booked it up and then as I was approaching last years date I got injured resulting in a bad foot injury which required surgery.
"This put me out for some time and I had to defer the race until this year."
However, this previous setback has only given Kevin further encouragement ahead of August this year.
He continued: "I've trained a lot for this, put in loads of miles and time in gym. You don’t realise how much time you have to invest into preparing for an event like this until you start but I'm really close now when I can finally give it a good go.
"The race which should be 215 miles but with a diversion in place ends up more like 220 miles takes in loads of hills and tough terrain as it crosses the whole of Scotland.
"You get 100 hours to complete it so eating and sleeping strategies are really important. I've got Scott crewing me this time which will make a big difference and hopefully the support of friends and family along the route.
"My fund raising and thanks to everyone who has sponsored me so far - every penny raised can make a huge difference to the kids and families who use this service."
Kevin's fundraising page is currently open, and available online. Those wishing to make a donation can do so at justgiving.com/page/kevin-brown-1710241199694.
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