THIS summer four men from Alton will be taking on the Iron Man Triathlon – a 2.4-mile swim followed by a 112-mile cycle ride and a 26.2-mile run – in fewer than 17 hours, in aid of the Help4Harry campaign.

On August 26, friends Simon Hewitt, Richard Littlewood, Daniel Shehan and Steve Lynam, who have dubbed themselves ‘Harry’s Iron Men’, will take on this gruelling challenge with one person in their minds, Harry.

The Help4Harry fund was set up by Farnham mum Sue Barnley, whose eight-year-old son Harry has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a progressive muscle-wasting condition.

The campaign’s main aim is to raise awareness and funds for the deadly condition, which could leave Harry wheelchair-bound at the age of 10.

Simon, who has completed a number of charity events in the past, said: “I was chatting to my dad one afternoon and he jokingly said I had put a little weight on and needed to do something about it (all in good humour).

“We laughed about it and I said ‘okay, I’ll complete an Ironman’. So from there I began to think about it.

“I realised this is a monster of a triathlon and to complete it alone would be very hard, so I decided to ask some crazy friends if they would like to support me and complete the Ironman with me.”

Harrys parents, Sue and Tom, were over the moon after the boys approached them and were more than eager to jump on board and help.

“After meeting Harry and his big brother, Jack, we were all overwhelmed, in particular Harry’s bravery and cheekiness,” added Simon.

The friends have been sponsored by Angela’s Swim School, who were keen to get involved and have been teaching the boys how to swim.

As well as this they have donated a prize to be auctioned at their charity evening later this year.

The day will start with a swim at Churcher’s College in Petersfield, from here they will cycle to Alton and complete five loops on the A31, between Alton and Farnham, therefore hitting their target of 112 miles in the saddle.

From there they will run loops around Alton finishing at The Hen and Chicken pub, on the A31 between Alton and Farnham, where the landlord will be laying on a finishing party.

Simon continues: “We aim to complete the event within 16 hours. With a start time in the pool of 4am, we aim to finish at the Hen and Chicken close to 8pm.

“The training is coming along. None of us are swimmers, cyclists or runners but we have made great progress so far and our distances are increasing every month. We have all hit highs and lows along training, butr things are coming together nicely.”

To find out more details or to donate, visit justgiving.com/fundraisingharrysironmen.