Sheona takes on her 14th MoonWalk Scotland!

“I’ve been involved with every single MoonWalk Scotland in some way. At the start, what attracted me was that it was something new and fun. In 2006, I tried to sign up for the first MoonWalk as a walker, but I was too late, so I volunteered for around 12 hours instead!

In 2007, I made sure that I signed up to walk as soon as entries opened and I’ve completed the Full Moon (26.2 miles) every year since. 2022 will be my fourteenth MoonWalk Scotland and over the years, I’ve raised just over £3,000 for Walk the Walk. Before my first MoonWalk, I’d always been a keen walker, but I had never done anything like a half marathon or marathon. Now I’m totally hooked! It’s so much fun, a great personal challenge and I really enjoy raising money for such an amazing cause.

I always sign up for The MoonWalk on my own, but every time I take part, I always catch up with somebody and have a nice chat with them as we’re walking along. Sometimes I even forget to ask them their name. Everyone is walking for the same reason – to raise money and awareness for breast cancer. We’re all united in the same cause and speaking to other people doing the same thing as me on the night is really inspiring. I love the fact that people from all over Scotland come to the MoonWalk and that every year, I get to meet so many different people.

Last year, when we couldn’t have a “Live” event, I did The Virtual MoonWalk Scotland on my own, starting at around 6.45am. I received several phone calls from the staff at Walk the Walk during my 26.2 miles - it was wonderful that we were in people’s thoughts and the calls were very motivating.

For my virtual MoonWalk, I largely followed the normal MoonWalk route from Holyrood Park, up Arthur’s Seat, out along the sea front and back into Edinburgh, although I did get a little bit lost in the city centre! Everything looked rather different in the daytime and I obviously missed all the wonderful volunteers showing us which way to go. It was really lovely to meet a few other MoonWalkers during my marathon - we all recognised each other, as we were wearing Walk the Walk’s bra t-shirts. It was very important for me to do complete the Virtual MoonWalk in 2021, even though there wasn’t an actual “LIVE” event.

Walking was something which really kept me going during lockdown. I was working from home and my daughter was living in Edinburgh, so I was basically on my own. We were allowed to go out for an hour each day, and I always made sure that I was out for that whole hour, so that I could actually see some real human beings in the flesh and possibly have a wee blether with them! I got myself a bike too, so between that and the walking, I kept myself pretty fit during lockdown.

I walk regularly anyway, but I’ll be stepping up my training walks in the build up to The MoonWalk in June. One of my favourite training walks is to park at Polmont and then walk along the canal to Edinburgh. Or I park at Cramond and walk along the seafront and into Edinburgh City Centre. I also park outside Glasgow, then walk into the city centre and back out again.

I’ll keep on taking part in The MoonWalk as long as I can – I’m always inspired on the night of the event, when they introduce the oldest MoonWalker, who is normally in their eighties. I’d like to be like that when I’m eighty!

I also volunteer at The MoonWalk London, which I really love. I book myself a weekend in London, watch a theatre show on the Saturday afternoon, then volunteer overnight. It’s a win-win situation for me. It’s wonderful to give something back and I know how amazing and supportive the volunteers are when I take part in The MoonWalk Scotland.

My message to anyone thinking of signing up for The MoonWalk Scotland is just to do it! Everybody has got the ability to complete it and it doesn’t matter how long it takes you, it really is about the taking part. It doesn’t matter whether you do it in five hours or ten hours, it’s a great feeling of achievement when you cross the finishing line and get that medal, alongside the fact that you’re raising money for charity”.

Thank you for sharing your story Sheona and we look forward to seeing you at The MoonWalk Scotland 2022!

Sign up now for The MoonWalk Scotland LIVE and The MoonWalk Scotland Virtual.