Thursday 24th March 2011 - Published by Kelly Jackson - Communications Executive
Social Media Specialist to Scale the Scottish Summits
A social media specialist is swapping his PC for the fresh air of the Scottish Highlands, with the aim of raising £100,000 for charity.
Allan Blair Beaton, Managing Director of Cardiff-based Social B2B, is attempting to climb all 283 Scottish ‘Munros’ consecutively, a feat that has so far been attempted by less than 50 people.
He will be beginning this mammoth task on July 13th and aims to complete it by the end of the first week in September.
Mr Blair Beaton said: “The world record for this attempt was set last year at 39 days and several hours, but I am not attempting to break this record as I will be doing it on my own without the aid of a support team.”
Allan’s challenging climbs will raise money for three local charities: South Wales-based Bullies Out, Age Cymru, and For Wales By Wales, in addition to national charity Help for Heroes.
His motivation for the climbs is three-fold, as he goes on to explain: “I really want to raise awareness of the Scottish Highlands and the surrounding countryside. Not many people actually know what a Munro is.
“I also want to travel the country and gain a perspective that less than 4,000 people have had the pleasure of seeing. Finally, I recently stopped smoking and thought that a challenge of this nature was a great way to highlight what a recently converted non-smoker could accomplish,” he added.
A Munro is a Scottish mountain with a summit of over 3,000 feet. There are 283 Munros in Scotland, the most famous of which is Ben Nevis.
Allan will begin his climb on Ben More on the Isle of Mull and will finish with the northernmost Munro, Ben Hope.
The social media specialist and outdoor enthusiast has already set up a Twitter account @munromarathon, and a Facebook group, Munro Marathon 2011, providing links to his Just Giving account for those who would like to sponsor him.
In addition to video blogging, tweeting, and Facebooking throughout his experience, Allan is hoping to transmit via a GPS chip so that people can look in on him every now and then and track his progress.
Allan Blair Beaton, in his hiking gear
