King’s College Boat Club’s 24-Hour ‘Ergathon’ Challenge For Alzheimer’s Research UK

On Saturday 7 March, King’s College Boat Club will be swapping the water for dry land when they begin a 24-hour ergathon challenge to boost funds for Alzheimer’s Research UK – the UK’s leading dementia research charity.

Three ergs (an indoor rowing machine which measures the amount of energy the rower is using) will be set up in front of King’s College, Cambridge, and members from the college’s rowing society will keep the ergs moving from 12noon on Saturday until the same time on Sunday when the challenge finishes.

The rowers will run a relay system and the only time the ergs won’t be in motion is during the change-over between rowers. They will row through the night and during the Cambridge Half Marathon, which also takes place on Sunday 8 March, and passes by King’s College where the ergathon will be in action.

Lachlan Jardine, King’s College Boat Club Men’s Captain, came up with the idea for the gruelling challenge. He said:

“Some members of the club have family members or friends who are affected by dementia and we wanted to do something to support research into the condition. More and more people are being affected by this horrendous condition so it’s vital that there are the funds in place for further research to take place.

“We hope to raise £5,000 for Alzheimer’s Research UK. King’s College has quite a large rowing society and all the different crews are very keen to take part and do their bit. The challenge has been divided into 1-hour slots on the ergs and some people have signed up for multiple slots. We train on the ergs as well as on the water, but for many of our novice members the 1-hour stints will be the longest they have worked for on an erg.”

Jessica Hiscocks, Regional Fundraising Officer at Alzheimer’s Research UK, the UK’s leading dementia research charity, said:

“We couldn’t be more grateful to the King’s College Boat Club for taking on this unique challenge and we wish them every success. Every £20 the club raises is enough to pay for another hour of pioneering research, bringing us closer to finding ways to diagnose, prevent, treat and cure Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

“There are 850,000 people across the UK living with dementia today, including over 7,500 people in Cambridgeshire. Despite this, dementia research is still significantly underfunded compared to other serious diseases. We rely on public donations to fund our world-class research and it’s thanks to the commitment of fundraisers like King’s College Boat Club that we’re able to continue our crucial work.”

To sponsor King’s College Boat Club visit https://www.givey.com/kcbcergathon. For further information about Alzheimer’s Research UK, or to find out more about fundraising for the charity, call 0300 111 5555 or visit www.alzheimersresearchuk.org.