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Slideshow
Drinks writers raise over £5k in Ardbeg half marathon
A team of more than 20 drinks writers and whisky retailers raised over £5,000 the National Brain Appeal by running the Ardbeg Half Marathon in memory of Alan Lodge.
Image credit: Phill Williams
The day started out grey, looking promising for the runners but soon the sun came out making a difficult run even more tricky for those taking part.
Image credit: Phill Williams
Ardbeg was Alan’s favourite whisky and the team decided to raise funds for the charity after he died last year of a brain haemorrhage, aged just 29.
Image credit: Phill Williams
Imbibe editor Chris Losh was the first of the team to finish, with a time of 1 hour 36 minutes, taking an impressive six minutes off his personal best.
Image credit: Phill Williams
Freelance writer Richard Woodard also beat his personal best, set 30 years ago, finishing in 1 hour 51 minutes.
Image credit: Phill Williams
Hamish Smith of Drinks International finished in just under two hours, but the two-hour mark just eluded Olly Wehring, who finished in 2 hours 2 minutes.
Image credit: Phill Williams
Alan’s sister, Hannah Grace Lodge, said: “My family has been overwhelmed by the support we have received from the drinks industry folk since my brother Alan passed away last year. It is evident how much Alan was loved by all in the industry; Ardbeg’s sponsorship of the half and for all of these wonderful people to run and raise money in Alan’s memory is such a testament to him. He always joked about being a legend… turns out, he kind of was one. Thank you so much to all who have been involved in supporting The National Brain Appeal in Alan’s name, he would be honoured.”
Image credit: Phill Williams
Shin splints prevented The Spirits Business deputy editor Becky Paskin from taking part, but she and Ardbeg’s Serena Kaye were on hand to offer support and hand out jelly babies at crucial times.
Image credit: Phill Williams
Sian Deegan, senior brand manager with Ardbeg, said: “On behalf of everyone at Ardbeg I’d like to congratulate all the runners who raised money for the National Brain Appeal this weekend. We are delighted to have extended some proper Islay hospitality to all the participants and proud to have raised a glass of Ardbeg to the memory of our late friend and colleague Alan Lodge.”
Image credit: Phill Williams
Ardbeg’s Sian Deegan and Rachel Ramanathan decided to tackle the tough course with the added handicap of a wheelbarrow full of peat, but completed the course to huge cheers from the crowd.
Image credit: Phill Williams
Runners included: Neil Aitken, Ardbeg; Ashish Basnet, The Whisky Exchange; Alison Birch, The Whisky Exchange; Lucy Britner, freelance drinks writer; Sian Deegan, Ardbeg; Laura Foster, Imbibe; Joel Harrison, caskstrength.net; George Keeble, Soho Whisky Club; Chris Losh, Imbibe; Marcin Miller, Quercus Communications; Arthur Motley, Royal Mile Whiskies; Becky Paskin, The Spirits Business; Rachel Ramanathan, Ardbeg; Vincent Rose, The Whisky Exchange; Sandrae Sharpen, The Cocktail Lovers; Richard Siddle, Harpers; Hamish Smith, Drinks International; Stephen Smith, WGSN; Eduardo Vivas, Ardbeg; Olly Wehring, just-drinks.com; Richard Woodard, freelance writer.
Image credit: Phill Williams
And the team enjoyed a well-deserved dram of Ardbeg after the run.