Skating the equivalent of a half marathon, straight after two hours of tough training practice, is no easy plight but our Birds did just that in aid of homeless charity Shelter.

The Birds, refs and our pre-minimums skaters volunteered to stay after session to complete a two-hour non-stop skate-a-thon and raised over £400 for the charity.

It was in support of my fundraising, as I’m taking part in the London Marathon in April and aim to raise £1,600 for Shelter.

When I asked the Birds for support I was humbled at how generous they were and at the enthusiasm they showed at the skate-a-thon. It really was a team effort.

They even endured my selection of music to accompany the event, which was probably even more gruelling than the skating and ranged from Walk Like An Egyptian by The Bangles to Surivor’s 80’s hit Eye Of The Tiger (‘ouch’ I hear you say!).

I was so shocked at how much money people had raised. A special mention has to be given to Rebecca English, who won the LRB Skate-a-thon Best Fundraiser trophy, Bird team mate Mint-Collision who raised a huge amount and our ref Dan Ambrose, who also raised lots of money.

Skating on the track for two hours with no hitting is a little tough but the skaters managed to keep themselves amused. The Birds even came up with their very own version of Limbo on the day, seeing who could skate under Dan’s legs – it’s lucky he’s tall!

It was an amazing effort and raised lots of money for a good cause. A huge thanks to everyone who took part.

(Hanna-Horror)