A dedicated Kilmarnock man will paddleboard Loch Lomond from Balloch to Tarbet to raise funds for a charity that ‘saved’ him.
Jack Allsop and his friend will raise vital funds and cash for Break the Silence – a charity that provides a range of tailored, professional support options in North and East Ayrshire for people affected by childhood sexual trauma.
Jack said: “This organisation is for people, men or women, that have experienced childhood sexual abuse.
“I feel strongly about this, and I am taking this opportunity to tell people that I was sexually abused as a child, and that it was not my fault.
“Break the Silence helped me a lot through my court case.
“I’m doing this fundraiser to raise awareness and to remind people that if you have experienced sexual abuse, it was not your fault. It’s ok to speak out, get therapy, and in my case find justice.”
Together with his friend Fiona Chambers, the duo will start their 18-mile challenge tomorrow (Saturday, November 9) at 7am.
Jack and Fiona are no strangers to chilly conditions as they both met at the Polar Bear Club in Glasgow.
Jack is also a world champion in an ice bath after spending 6 hours and 1 minute in zero degrees/two degrees ice water.
While Fiona is a world record holder with the Record Holders Republic, after she entered a 1,000-litre ice bath and completed 619 resets – head under and then up – in zero degrees water.
The duo is now ready to take on a new challenge and paddleboard from Balloch to Tarbet.
Jack said: “At the beginning of the year in February I became the world champion in an ice bath in a record time of 6 hours and 1 minute.
“Ice dipping in rivers and around waterfalls has helped me hugely with the challenges that I face and has introduced me to a great new group of people.
“Being close to the water for me is therapy in itself so I am looking forward to a different type of fresh water challenge this time.”
He continued: “It’s a challenge and even more of one when I can’t paddle board that great.
“And we are nervous as this will take a good 12-hour or more to complete starting at 7am.”
Fiona, from Motherwell, said: “I would say I’m very much a novice on the paddle board, I have some experience but not much.
“I think the most challenging part will be the length of time it will take. It will be really sore on our legs and knees as we will have to alternate between standing and kneeling, I don’t think we will be able to endure either solely for the duration of the challenge.
“Both myself and Jack are very experienced in ice training, we both hold world records in that field so I think we will be able to manage the cold well at least.”
Fiona added: “I’m so proud of Jack for his bravery in sharing his story and spreading awareness of a subject that hits very close to home for me also. So even though I find this challenge quite frightening as I think it will be tough I believe it’s for a very good cause so I’m going to give it the best shot I’ve got.”
Jack already hit his fundraising target of £500 and is hoping to raise more for the charity close to his heart.
He said: “If it was not for my family none of this would have happened, my partner is my rock and the one who keeps me going.”
To support Jack’s fundraiser, please visit here.
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