Glenrothes man bags three Munros climbing stairs at home

Ross Cunningham, from Glenrothes, bagged raised £1,263 for SAMH – Scottish Association for Mental Health - by climbing the equivalent of three Munros on his staircase.

The 34-year-old ascended his stairs a total of 1,312 times in a week to hike the equivalent heights of Torridon's Liathach (3,461 feet), Kintail's The Saddle (3,318 feet), and - the highest mountain in Scotland - Ben Nevis (4,413 feet).

That’s equivalent to walking to the top floor of the Empire State Building and back down again over nine times!

The money raised is enough for the charity to fund 64 support sessions where SAMH spend time with someone listening and talking, helping them in their recovery from mental ill-health.

Ross paid tribute to everyone who backed his fundraising initiative during lockdown.

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"I would like to thank everyone who donated to this challenge, which goes directly to supporting people in Scotland in their recovery from ill mental health,” he said.

“There will be more people than ever who will be affected by mental health issues, due to the pandemic and the lockdown, so it's a great feeling to have raised so much money after a pretty gruelling week of ascending my stair case over and over!

"Depression is something that I've gone through before and it was an awful and very lonely place to be, so it's important that people are aware of where to turn to when they need support and that there are always charities like SAMH who are ready to help them in their recovery.”

And he challenged others to follow suit anf start hiking up their stairs for charity.

"Hopefully this challenge can inspire other people to take on their own indoor challenges to keep fit indoors during the lockdown or when self isolating due to the coronavirus.” he said.

“Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh would take 97 ascents of a typical 13-step staircase to reach its equivalent height, so it's maybe something people could aim for whether at home or on steps in a local park as a first indoor hill."

To donate to Ross’ fundraiser visit:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/rosscunninghamstaircasechallenge/

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