Social media has changed the way athletes get to know and follow one another. Since I entered the sport of ultramarathon running in 2012 I probably have more connections outside the UK than within it – most of whom I have never physically met.
One of these was Lon Lomas, a triathlete based in Fayetteville, Louisiana. Lomas and I got to know each other as we moved into ultras and we both planned our first 100-mile footraces for this year. Lomas will not run his, as he was killed in a hit-and-run incident whilst cycling on 7 July, just a couple of miles from his house. He leaves a wife, Alicia, and two young children, Slaydon and Riley.
I never got to meet Lomas in person but his death has really affected me. As a husband and father, it has made me appreciate how fragile life can be, and how it can be so senselessly and horrifically ripped away in a heartbeat.
Lomas’s first 100 miler was set to be the Brazos Bend 100 in Texas, on 13 December. A few days later, it will be his wife and children’s first Christmas without Lomas.
The first 100-mile finish is a race to be cherished and remembered forever. The award is a shiny belt buckle, a legacy of when 100-mile races were on horseback. Lomas will never earn his award, so I am going to run the race in his honour and give the belt buckle to his wife and kids at the finish. I like to think if the situation was reversed, this would mean the world to my family.
I have had a lot of support in this endeavour and have been offered a free race entry and free accommodation by the race organisers. However, I have stumbled with the cost of the flight which is £750 return from London to Houston. This was not a planned trip and I just don’t have the money to make it happen alone.
So I have set up a page with Crowdfunder, which specialises in helping people raise money for community projects or special events, such as this one. I know that the running community – particularly within ultrarunning – is a special place and I am reaching out to fellow runners, cyclists and parents to help me make this possible for Alicia, Slaydon and Riley.
I will be keeping donors updated via my website as I build up to this event – and will have Lomas and his family in my thoughts as I race the North Downs Way 100 this coming weekend. Every penny raised over £750 (at time of writing we have £780) will go to his family.
Lomas’s death is an absolute tragedy and so senseless. As time passes on and grief fades, it is often the family which suffers alone. To run this race six months after his death is very important to me, and I hope together we can make this happen.
UPDATE FROM TIM:
I am overwhelmed with the support this project has had in just the last 24 hours. To be funded, sometimes up to £100, and even one lady offering to pay for my flight in full, by mostly complete strangers – this is beyond my wildest imagination. Whilst what I am doing will not bring Lon back, I hope it emphaises to his family that they are not alone and there is another family Lon belonged to, runners from all over the world. I also want to give a huge thanks to Kate Carter at The Guardian and Duncan at Crowdfunder. Crowdfunder will not make much more than £30 out of my project, but have supported it because of their ethos. I cannot rate them highly enough.
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