in April 2022 we lost a great friend, father, husband, brother and son. He was called Hughie. A teacher for most of his adult life, Hughie moved with his wife Rosie, and young son Rory to Winchester from London just before lockdown. What started as a pain in his left hip, quickly developed into a rare form of osteosarcoma. In January 2021 in the midst of 2 brutal surgeries and 12 rounds of chemotherapy, he and Rosie welcomed their second son, Raffie, into the world.

A little over a year later, tragically, Hughie died.

During his last weeks Hughie moved to the Winchester Hospice. An incredible place with incredible people and for whom we are planning this - insane homage to Hughie.

It will be, fittingly, 14 years to the day that Hughie attempted the hardest cross country ski race in the world, the Varsaloppet, in Sweden. Egged on by friends, he undertook the challenge for the charity of a boy he taught at school, whose own father had recently been taken by illness.

And so, it seemed appropriate that a group of Hughie's friends would return to Sweden, to attempt to finish the journey he started 15 years ago.

These friends have never cross country skiied before - have in most cases never been to northern Sweden, and have certainly never tried to cover 90km in sub-zero temparatures. We might well fail, but as Hughie pointed out, its the trying that counts. And so, we will try.

Thank you for reading, thank you for supporting and thank you Winchester for making Hughie's last days possible.