Jim Leishman completes 80-mile charity walk
Jim Leishman and a team of around 40 volunteers completed an 80-mile charity fund-raiser that took in the Forth Road and Clackmannanshire bridges.
Jim finishes his walk with grandson Jamie. (Photo by David Wardle)
- By Lars Niven
- Published in the Courier : 07.06.10
- Published online : 07.06.10 @ 10.11am
It is the latest in a long line of high-profile events the former Dunfermline Athletic FC player and manager has completed in the last year.
As ever, he was raising money for the charity he set up in memory of his late wife, Mary, who died from cancer in February of last year.
The Mary Leishman Foundation passed the £250,000 mark in style last month by holding a celebrity golf tournament in Spain. Among the previous fund-raisers the Dunfermline director of football has completed are the Fife Coastal Path and a fire walk at East End Park.
The walkers stayed at various locations en route and kept themselves entertained on their evenings off with everything from a barbecue to a karaoke session.
The walk ended in the rain at 3pm on Sunday when Leish and his army of volunteers crossed the finishing line at Pittencrieff Park in Dunfermline.
Their route took them from Dunfermline into Clackmannan and across the new bridge at Kincardine. They then doubled back along the southern shores of the Firth of Forth the following day to South Queensferry.
After a night's rest at the Dakota Hotel, they headed back over the road bridge to Aberdour in west Fife before the final leg to Dunfermline.
Tougher
Jim admitted it had been tougher than last year's walk along the Fife Coastal Path, mainly because of the warm weather on the first few days.
"It was hard work," he said as he sipped a cooling pint of lager in the Glen Pavilion.
"The second day, when we had to do the 22-and-a-half miles, was really, really hard work because the sun was out. The last mile-and-a-half was tough, but we got through it and all managed to soldier on."
He added that he had been touched by the support they got from members of the public on their marathon jaunt.
"The reception we got along the way was brilliant," he said.
"The kids were coming out of their schools to cheer us on. Everything's just been super."
When asked what he planned next, Jim smiled and said, "People keep coming up with new ideas and we just join in. That's what it's all about."
For more on the foundation's efforts visit www.maryleishmanfoundation.com
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