A TEAM of friends from Crow country are making final preparations setting off to the North East to tackle the Bupa Great North Run.

With 10 days to go before the race, which takes place on Tyneside, the eight runners from Royston - Matt Hall, Angela Knight, Laura Ball, Grant Chapman, Dan Crowe, Martin Arber, James Chapman and Heather Grant - are getting ready to tackle the 13.1 mile course in aid of various charities.

For Grant Chapman, 37, it is the fourth time he has taken part in the race.

He told the Crow: “It started with a group of four of us in 2009 and has grown from there. We all have our separate training regimes, and tend to go out in pairs to practice, but we get together once a week on Tuesday evenings at Therfield Heath for a run together.

“There are a lot of different abilities in the group, with some people having more experience than others, but everyone is getting ready now and a couple of the people did their first 10 mile runs on Sunday so it’s all coming together nicely I think.”

Mr Chapman, of Green Drift, Royston, has run on behalf of various charities over the years, and this year will be representing the Multiple Sclerosis Society.

He said: “Previously I’ve got in with a specific charity’s space, but this year I got through on the ballot, meaning I can choose my own charity. A friend of mine knows someone who is affected by MS, and he asked me if I would run on their behalf.

“I’m really looking forward to it. I know the course quite well now, and will be looking to beat my personal best. I certainly want to go round in under one hour, 30 minutes, but we’ll see how it goes.”

Each runner has an individual Just Giving sponsorship page, which they will be promoting to friends and colleagues via Facebook.