Vertical Rush is back...
Shelter’s award-winning tower running event, Vertical Rush, returns to the capital for a third year. The charity is calling on people across the country to help make it the biggest and best event yet. Vertical Rush is a uniquely demanding endurance event that challenges participants to race up the 920 steps of Tower 42, the City of London’s first skyscraper…
Full event release
On 3 March 2011, Shelter hopes to see hundreds of people from across the UK lace up their running shoes and take part in this unique event, which will see celebrities such as Britain’s number one long jumper and Strictly Come Dancing contestant Jade Johnson, Hollyoaks actor and winner of ITV’s 71 Degrees North, actor Marcus Patrick and fitness trainer to the stars Matt Roberts scale the 42 floors to the top of the Tower.
Actor and 71 Degrees North winner, Marcus Patrick said:“I’ve been looking for a fresh challenge for the New Year and Vertical Rush sounds perfect. It looks like you need some serious stamina to scale the 920 steps of Tower 42, but fresh from my victory in the North Pole I feel confident I’ll get to the top in good time.
I’ve done some crazy things recently but tower running is a first. I hope people will join me to scale the steps and help raise vital funds to support the work that Shelter does with thousands of people in housing need in this country.”
This year Vertical Rush is part of the Vertical World Circuit, the “Formula One” of the tower-running world. World class tower runners from across the world will be taking part in an exclusive elite wave in the hope of taking home the winning medal at the end of the tournament. Other towers in the circuit include the first ever tower-running event, the Empire State Building Run-Up in New York and the Tapei 101 in Taiwan which was until recently, the world’s tallest building.
Louise Parkes, Shelter’s Director of Fundraising, said: _“Following the award-winning success of last year’s Vertical Rush, we are setting our sights high for next year’s event which we boast to be the best yet.
We are encouraging people from across the UK to sign up to be a part of this world-class event and in turn help raise funds to support Shelter’s vital work with homeless and badly-housed families across the country who need our help now more than ever.”
Nathan O’Reilly, Operations Manager at Tower 42, said: “We’re really excited to be working with Shelter to help make this fantastic event a huge success for the third year running. This is an incredibly worthwhile cause and we’re delighted to be hosting the biggest tower-running event in the UK.”
Originally inspired by the famous Empire State Building Run-Up in New York, Vertical Rush sees groups of chip-timed runners, who compete individually or in teams, setting off in hourly slots to set their personal bests. Following the extraordinary popularity of 2010’s event where more than 900 runners raised over £195,910, for Shelter, Vertical Rush 2011 is hoping to attract 1,200 runners who will be aiming to raise more than £180,000.
To register for Vertical Rush click here
