Week one: finding our feet
Wednesday 1 July, and the whole team laced up, charged their Strava and got moving. Whether it was a stroll round the block, a proper run, or Jack's gentle bike ride along the railway path to the pub (for research purposes, obviously), every kilometre went towards the total. The #active-gibe Slack channel quickly became the best kind of noisy, filled with photos, encouragement and the odd bit of good-natured competitiveness.
Matt was one of several who got back in the saddle for it: "I've been a bit of a slacker this year when it comes to cycling, so the charity fundraiser was the perfect excuse to get back into it. I even managed to do a few group rides with Jack and Michael, even if Jack was pulling us along the whole time!"
Week two: heatwave? what heatwave?
Despite one of the hottest spells of the summer, the team pushed on and hit 865km by the end of week two, with 16 days still to go. Jack held onto top spot on the leaderboard, with Bilal and Soph hot on his heels.
Sophie commented: "It was so hard trying to find the energy to run during a crazy heatwave, each time I went out I was sweating before I'd even started! I desperately tried to keep to the shady areas and use the trees of the local woods, nature reserves and river as shelter. I'm so glad we were able to hit our target, it felt like a tough one this year so we should all be really proud of ourselves for making it!"
Week three: past the halfway mark
By week three we'd clocked up 1,102km, with 372km added in that week alone. KP and Sophie led the pack, and the variety of ways people were racking up the kilometres said everything about the team: dog walks, a Pokémon-fuelled wander from Gregory, a swim from Cat, Darren taking on Couch to 5K, and Tristan putting in the miles around Central London. With 898km still to go, the finish line felt close but not quite in reach.
Darren and his girlfriend Elle used the challenge as their kickstart: "My girlfriend Elle and I decided to start running the couch to 5K programme. Elle wants to prepare for the Bristol 10K next year and I wanted to work on my running fundamentals. The charity challenge was the perfect reason for us to get started."
Luke, meanwhile, used it to build towards a bigger goal: "Having run the Bristol 10k this year I wanted to push further and begin training for the half marathon next year. Running for charity was a great motivator for those boring Sunday long runs."
The final push
Heading into the last week, we were still a little short of our fundraising target, but the distance goal was well within sight. Jack led the charge out front on the bike, injury and all, with KP right on his tail. With just 100km left to hit the target on the final day, the team dug in for one last push, squeezing in extra walks, runs and cycles to get us over the line.
By the end of the month, we'd moved well over the distance we set out to cover, and raised money that will go directly towards SPUK's lifesaving work. Cat summed up Jack's month best: "Despite nursing an injured foot (and the inevitable sore knee that came with it), our 2026 July charity challenge top mover, Jack still clocked an incredible 346.07km over the month. While he says it was 'less than usual' with a few shorter runs and some missed sessions, it was still enough to top the leaderboard. A brilliant effort and a well-deserved win, proving that consistency goes a long way, even when you're not at 100%."
Why it matters to us
"A little while ago, we lost a dear friend to suicide. A young father, a great laugh, always up for a good time and always looking out for other people. None of us saw it coming, and none of us knew he needed help. It's changed how we think about checking in on the people around us, even the ones who seem fine. That's why this cause matters so much to us, and why we wanted to help make sure fewer people feel like they've got nowhere left to turn."
A big thank you
To Cat and Soph, for keeping the whole team organised, motivated and moving all month. To Jack Durcan, KP, Sophie and Bilal for setting the pace at the front. And to every single person at Gibe who got out there, whether that meant smashing daily runs or squeezing in a ten-minute walk between meetings. Every kilometre counted.
If you'd like to support SPUK's work, you can find out more and donate at Spuk's Website our Just Giving page. Every bit helps.
If you or someone you know needs support, SPUK's helpline is free to call on 0800 587 0800.
At the point of writing this, we discovered a press release from gov.uk announcing a major expansion of community mental health support.
You can read the article here: UK Community Mental Health Support Expansion
