Andrew a Law unto himself as he puts his heart into raising funds

Andrew Knight is occasionally joined by friends and family on his epic challenge

After he survived a heart attack at the age of 52, Andrew wanted to raise money for British Heart Foundation (BHF) Scotland but was determined to push himself to do something different.

A walk to the top of North Berwick Law on New Year’s Day inspired him to set a year-long challenge – vowing to climb the 187-metre landmark every single day of 2019.

Now as he approaches the end of his epic fundraiser, Andrew is urging the public to support him and BHF Scotland’s Christmas Wish Campaign to help fund lifesaving research into all heart and circulatory diseases and their causes.

Andrew said: “When I had my heart attack, it seemed to come from nowhere. It blew my socks off and left me scared to breathe never mind walk anywhere. To be honest, the following few months were difficult not just for me but also my family, as none of us really knew what the future held.

“Overnight I changed from someone who was generally laid back and relaxed to someone who was anxious about every twinge in my chest area, perceived or otherwise.

“The turning point for me came when I joined my local cardiac rehabilitation programme and it gave me the confidence to move forward with my life. It’s with the BHF in mind that I embarked on my Law challenge in the hope that I may in some small way inspire others as the BHF did me.”

Andrew has been accompanied at various points along the way by his wife and three children but is hoping to be joined by around 100 friends and family for his final ascent on Hogmanay.

Once complete, Andrew will have scaled a massive 68,255 metres over the course of the year – that’s the same height as nearly eight Mount Everests.

Andrew said: “I wanted to give something back because the support that I received from BHF following my heart attack was tremendous. Research is so important. The more scientists can understand about heart disease, the more likely conditions can be identified and treated earlier and hopefully this means less people like me having heart attacks.”

In 1961, when the BHF was founded, more than seven out of 10 heart attacks in the UK were fatal. Now thanks in part to research which the BHF has helped fund, seven of 10 people survive. But the charity wants to see further improvements and thousands more survive by 2030.

To help the BHF make Christmas wishes come true, visit bhf.org.uk/christmas or justgiving.com/fundraising/lawchallenge2019