Swindon 105.5 reporter Dave Woods, 52, will be taking to the street’s on Friday to raise funds for the Swindon based radio station.The town’s community radio service, which has been on air since 2008, is currently upgrading its third studio so it can be used by volunteers with disabilities and making it wheelchair accessible. It will also be used for training, meetings and be able to host live music and discussion shows on the air.
Dave said “I’m always up for a challenge and as I’m currently furloughed from my day job, I wanted to put my free time to good use. The station is upgrading one of its studios to accommodate live bands and adding a new interactive and accessible training facility, so I thought I do my bit and get my running shoes back out to raise a few pounds with a run. I would like to raise about £300 pounds, but I appreciateits it’s a tough environment in the current circumstances so I’ll see how much I can raise.”
“I haven’t run for about 2 years after I got a running injury” Dave added “so I challenged myself back in June to do 20k, as its 2020. The longest I previously run before training for this event was 6 miles. I gave myself just 4 weeks to prepare for the sponsored run and last Sunday I managed 15k in just under 2 hours and was really pleased with that. I am actually looking forward to Friday.
I’ll be running between Liden and Covingham, near to our studios, keeping to cycle paths to ensure the run is safe and within social distancing guidelines.”
“Swindon 105.5 is more than a radio station, it supports so many other local organisations and charities across the town plus trains and mentors local people in the skills to produce features on air as well, so the new studio will ensure we can continue to broaden our involvement locally. The station is such a great community initiative to be involved with, so hopefully our listeners, the people of Swindon and anyone who would like to support the project will give generously.”
Dave, has volunteered at the awsrd winning radio station for the past 11 years and is no stranger to raising funds. 5 years ago he rode 105.5 miles on a static bike at his local Tesco and has been instrumental in organising a number of other fund raising events over his time at the station.
Dave’s 20k Run For SWINDON 105.5 will take place this Friday, 10th July, starting from outside the radio station, at the Liden Library building, during Howard Taylor’s Breakfast Show. Listeners will then be able to follow his progress with regular updates from his on air colleagues during the morning show. The station will also be streaming the run live on social media.
The event is being supported by local MP, Justin Tomlinson, Minister for Disability and Swindon North who will be visiting the station during the run and present Dave with a finishers medal live on air after he crosses the finish line.
