Peterborough woman to scale Mount Everest from her lounge this Boxing Day for Motor Neurone Disease Association

Many of us will spend Boxing Day on the sofa tucking into a box of chocolates and flicking through the TV channels, wondering what leftovers are in the fridge.

For Carolyn Pfalzgraf, however, it will look very different as she will be undertaking a gruelling virtual cycle to the top of Mount Everest to raise money for the charity that helped her father-in-law, David, when he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND).

She will begin at 7am and expects to spend all day cycling 8848m; which is equivalent to scaling Everest. Carolyn will also be joined by her friend Tim, who will be taking part from his own home in Northumberland.

She said: “My father-in-law, David, passed away from MND in June this year after a two-year battle with this horrendous disease.

“Especially towards the end, just getting through each day was like doing a virtual Everest for him and he never gave up.

“Cycling is something special for David and me. The MND Association gave us a set of pedals that he could use while sitting in a chair and we practiced this together to keep his legs as mobile as possible.

“When he needed help to turn the pedals, I would kneel on the floor and we’d pedal together, always looking to set a new record number of revolutions.

“I always think about him when I’m cycling and feel like quitting. Stopping is a choice for me, and it wasn’t for him. One amazing thing about David was how he always wanted to help others and give back, and that’s another reason why he’s my inspiration to do this.

“The MND Association gave us a lot of support in caring for David throughout the course of his disease, so I know that every penny raised will have a direct impact on the lives of MND patients and their families.”

MND is a fatal rapidly progressing disease that affects the brain and spinal cord, attacking the nerves that control movement so muscles no longer work. It kills a third of people within a year and more than half within two years of diagnosis.

The MND Association focuses on improving access to care, research and campaigning for those people living with or affected by MND in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

You can watch Carolyn and Tim take on the challenge using their Twitch stream at http://twitch.tv/plantpoweredpedalling and donate to their challenge by visiting their Just Giving page www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Tim-Burdon.

For more information about MND and the MND Association please visit www.mndassociation.org.