Rob Turner
Brathay's experience significantly helped me to appreciate what is achievable when given such opportunities.
I attended a 'Managers in Action' Course at Brathay Hall in June 1978. (43 years ago!) This course turned out to be the most challenging, stimulating and practically useful training course I ever attended in my working life.
I was put forward to attend this course by my employer as I suffered from a lack of self-confidence.
Amongst the many physical challenges which I experienced during the course, two remain vividly in my memory. One, Jumping out of a 3rd floor window at Brathay Hall strapped into an inertia reel safety harness - and two, guiding a stretcher, complete with a volunteer patient, down a sheer rock face as part of a mountain face rescue exercise!
Needless to say, I returned from the course with a significantly improved level of self-confidence!
Since 1978 and the 'Brathay experience', I have always looked for the next challenge whether it be tandem skydiving (twice in NZ), cycling across the Pyrenees (Atlantic to the Med) and across the Alps (Lake Geneva to Nice) or climbing Mt Kilimanjaro, parts of the Himalayas and all the 214 Wainwrights in my beloved Cumbrian fells, whilst raising money for several charitable causes with the significant help from family and friends.
Looking back on life at 78 and many of my life’s experiences, one thing becomes clear: everyone is born with something to offer and achieve, all it takes is to be given that opportunity to learn, experience and challenge oneself.
My 1978 'Brathay experience' significantly helped me to appreciate what is achievable when given such opportunities.
