An 87-year-old great granddad is walking the circumference of the Earth to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Society. Brian Everett is aiming to walk 24,901 miles before reaching his 90th birthday.
After the loss of his wife Sheila in 2004 to breast cancer, Brian started doing fundraising challenges and has since raised over £200,000 for various charities and causes. This particular fundraiser started in 2017 and the octogenarian has walked over 18,000 miles so far.
Brian walks an average of 9.3 miles every day and expects to finish in 2024, when he turns 90 years old. The journey has taken him all over England and Europe, trekking for around five or six hours every day with barely a day off.
Brian said: “It is a bit of a struggle, quite honestly, doing the remaining mileage. I think you just have to keep going. It’s partially nice to have achieved it but it’s daunting to think that I’ve still got some way to go.”
Sheila and Brian used to go on adventures such as visiting the Himalayas or trekking in the Annapurna Mountains in Nepal. Spurred on by his memory of Sheila, Brian has tackled cycling journeys, long distance running and climbing mountains all in the name of charity.
He said: “I thought at the time that I would try to put some money back into cancer research, so that triggered off the first few challenges. Then I thought that there are other charities I wanted to support so I did more and more challenges to raise money for those.”
The pensioner, who has three children, eight grandchildren and two great grandchildren, will walk the equivalent to the equatorial circumference of the Earth. He’s been walking for over 2,000 days and doesn’t take many breaks, even on Christmas Day.
The idea came to him when he started running out of ideas for challenges. “I thought this was something different. I started out with the idea of simulating a walk across America but then it developed out of that to walking around the world,” he said.
Brian completes his challenge by doing two walks each morning and afternoon. He said: “I walk wherever I am. It varies but I can spend up to five or six hours a day walking,” he said.
“It’s the only way you can get the mileage in quite honestly, because I’ve been averaging 9.3 miles a day. If I take a day off, I need to make up for it by walking double the distance the next day.”
While some of his family think he’s mad, most are appreciative of what he’s trying to achieve. Brian isn’t phased by the enormity of the task however, he said: “Walking for a few hours a day just becomes natural – I just hope I don’t pull a hamstring or something like that.”
Life hasn’t stopped for this octogenarian though, he takes his family with him on Christmas walks to keep up his daily miles. On holidays he continues to walk and has visited Italy, France, Malta, Malaysia, China, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand on his journey.
The fundraiser hoped to reach £20,000 raised for Alzheimer’s Society and is just shy of the halfway mark at £9,500. He describes this massive effort as “modest” given the amount he has raised previously.
At the heart of all his challenges is Sheila, who died aged 67. “There’s a big gap in your life. It never goes away. It’s been 18 years but the gap is still there,” he said. “Obviously, when you’re doing things you used to do together, you miss your partner.”
The couple moved to Darlington, County Durham in 1999 when Sheila was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer. Brian said: “We moved up here because my son-in-law said they have the best oncologists in the country, which turned out to be true.
“Instead of having just a few months to live, she lived another four and a half years. I was so relieved, and we went on several cruises as well as staying with friends in America during that time.”
Brian’s challenges have taken him all over the world to destinations most travellers can only dream of. In 2006, at age 71, he went to Morocco to trek and climb over the High Atlas Mountains and covered 180 miles in 10 days and roughly 14,000 feet.
Ten years later he climbed five active volcanoes in eight days on the Mediterranean and Aeolian Islands. That same year he cycled the Pennines in under eight hours.
From the Inca Trail to Mount Kenya and Mount Kilimanjaro, Brian has been there. He climbed to Everest’s base camp and cycled along the Danube River over 14 days, raising money for charity with each step or pedal.
This latest challenge for the Alzheimer’s Society brings the fundraiser back to a more personal place. “I know that it’s not only the people affected by dementia but those that help support them who are suffering as well. It’s a painful process,” he said.
Brian isn’t walking on a whim either, he keeps everything closely charted, he shared: “I know the routes by heart now, but ever since I started, I’ve kept a log of everything from blood pressure, pulse, heart rate, weight, miles walked, climbs to calories burned.”
This epic endeavour is by no means the last for Brian, who will be 90 by the time he finishes his walk around the world. “I’ll just have to wait and see what opportunities arise,” said the pensioner.
“I hope I will still be doing challenges. I just want to do something to keep the mind and body active, but there’s also the added bonus that the challenges help generate funds for charities.”
He added: “I’ve been doing them for 20-odd years now, but I want to keep going.”
