Following the successful launch of First Central Group's EPIC Week, over 70 people have already signed up to the event, but organisers are calling for more of the Guernsey community to take on their own EPIC seven-day challenge.
 
The week-long event, which will take place from Monday 10^th to Sunday 16^th July 2017, is raising money for Guernsey Mind and This is EPIC whilst inspiring people of all ages and abilities to become more active and take on new challenges.
 
EPIC Challenges have created a selection of swimming, cycling, running, walking and triathlon distances as an example of the different activities individuals or teams can take part in during the seven-day event.
 
Organisers have already encouraged a number of individuals and teams to sign up to take on demanding personal fitness challenges for the event, and as headline sponsors, we have also set ourselves a target, which sees a team of our employees challenging themselves to complete a 5km run every day of the week-long event. Employees have begun their training, buddying up and running together and they're enjoying getting active in their lunchtimes.
 
Cerebro Health and Fitness has also entered a team of six people to run 5km each day for seven days in a row.
 
Founder of Cerebro Health and Fitness, Josh Davies, said: “Reading more about the purpose behind the EPIC Challenges events solidified our team’s reasons and drive to take on this challenge. They're a great group and have worked really hard to get where they are, so being able to take part in something like this is a big milestone and achievement for them.”
 
Lisa Vidamour, First Central Group's Group Operations Manager, added: “This event is a great chance for individuals and teams to really challenge themselves to get active whilst raising money for great causes. To sponsor an event that inspires people to make a healthy change in their lives is very exciting and has inspired our employees to do the same. We're supporting our people by offering them flexible working hours while training and time off over the seven-day event to complete their challenge."
 
Jon Press, 39, is going for a bigger distance and has taken up the huge challenge of running seven marathons in seven days during the event. “I have done a few marathons and ultras before, including two of the EPIC Moonlight Marathons and the EPIC12 overnight ultra, so this seemed to be the next step up to test my body and also raise money for great causes.
 
“I love This Is EPIC’s ethos of ‘a help up, not a hand out’ and hearing about what people have done with the money raised from these events is inspiring. Being a part of this community event where so many people are going to be challenging themselves in new ways is going to be amazing,” he said.
 
Other notable individual and team sign-ups to date include:

• Brian Williams – seven triathlons in seven days (750m swim, 20km cycle and 5km run each day). He is learning to swim to take on this challenge!
• Elizabeth Powers – cycling seven laps of Guernsey in seven days
• Mark Smith – cycling 100 miles before work each day for the week-long event
• Team from Resolution IT – 10 Olympic triathlons in seven days (1.5km swim, 40km cycle and 10km run each day)

Event organisers and local endurance athletes, Philip Smith and Warren Mauger, will take on their biggest athletic challenge to date as they attempt seven Ironman distance triathlons in seven days as part of the event.

This will consist of a 2.4 mile swim in Havelet Bay, a 112 mile bike ride (which will see the duo cycle up and down the west coast) and to finish, a 26.2 mile marathon run that will cover four laps from Havelet to Vale Castle. They will then repeat this route every day for the next six days, totalling 984.2 miles for the whole week.

Philip said: “We really want to see as many people as possible across every age and ability taking on an activity that is a challenge for them, it doesn’t matter how far or fast they go, it’s just a case of getting out each day and doing something they may not have done before. We’re hoping that people will get behind the event by signing up to take on a new individual or team challenge and help raise as much money as possible for two great local charities.”

People can register online for the event, select their challenge and then personalise their activity to suit their fitness level or interest, encouraging them to push themselves harder than ever before.

To sign up for your EPIC Challenge, please go to the EPIC Challenges’ website