A HELENSBURGH man is in training to run the West Highland Way for charity.

Alistair Gray, 33, a civil engineer in Glasgow will run the 95-mile West Highland Way in June to raise funds for a blind charity, RNIB.

He was prompted to take on the mammoth challenge for the charity because his Aunt Barbara lost her sight in childhood.

He wants any money he raises to go to the ‘talking books’ service provided by the charity for those with sight loss.

Alistair said: “My friend challenged me to do something extraordinary so I thought running 95 miles over the West Highland Way would fit the bill. I saw it as an opportunity to raise money for RNIB Scotland.

“Sight loss is something close to my heart as my Aunt Barbara has been blind since losing her sight following complications from an accident in her childhood. She now has no vision at all.”

Alistair has been running marathons and ultra-marathons for the past few years but this is the first time he will attempt such an extreme challenge.

He will line up beside 200 other runners at 1am on Saturday, June 18 and set off from Milngavie.

He will then run through some of Scotland’s most spectacular scenery taking in the banks of Loch Lomond and Rannoch Moor before finishing in Fort William.

Alistair hopes to complete the distance in around 20 hours.

He added: “It’s not the 95 miles that worries me but the 53 before breakfast!”

To raise as much for the charity as he can Alistair is selling advertising space on his running kit and already has a sponsor on board – MHB Consultants.

He has chosen to support RNIB ‘talking books’ service as part of the charity’s #bookschangelives campaign, which proves to be a lifeline for those with sight loss as without it most literature would be denied to them. It costs RNIB £2,500 to professionally transcribe each book into audio and braille.

For more information or to donate visit Alistair’s JustGiving page at justgiving.com/fundraising/Allyruns100