The Northern Bootcamp are backing football writer Neil Custis in his pounds versus points battle with Manchester United manager Louis Van Gaal.
Onside PR have arranged for Custis to spend a week at the UK’s leading non-military style fitness boot camp in a final bid to winning his challenge with the under fire Old Trafford boss.
Custis found himself at the centre of a global storm created when the United boss labelled him ‘fat man’ as he stormed out of a press conference at Newcastle United in January.
Neil took the comments in his stride and turned the barb into a challenge betting Van Gaal that he could lose more pounds than Manchester United would win points from that point until the end of the season.
Intense
He will check into the Northern Bootcamp tonight before beginning a week of intense physical activity in his battle to win the challenge – and secure £1,000 donation to charity.
Neil explained: “I’m ready to get it on, I’ve been training hard myself after recovering from injury and since I laid down the challenge I’ve lost 22 Ibs whilst United have secured 26 points.
“I am determined to complete the challenge but that will need a big last push with United still potentially able to add another nine points to their total for the season.
“The team at Northern Bootcamp have promised to help me reach my goal and I will be doing everything to secure the win and the charitable donation donated by Paddy Power.”
Former newspaper colleague James Fletcher, MD of Onside PR arranged the week at Northern Bootcamp. Fletcher was formerly Chief Northern Football Writer of The News of the World and The Mirror and worked alongside Custis for many years as ‘friendly rivals.’
Fletcher, added: “The team at Northern Bootcamp are terrific and I have every confidence they will help Neil achieve his goal. It is great to try and help a former colleague and I wasn’t inspired at all by the prospect of seeing Neil suffer for a week at all. Honestly!”
Fat Man Gate
“FatmanGate” blew up as Van Gaal stormed away from a press conference at St James’ Park after watching his United team held to a 3-3 draw with relation threatened Newcastle.
Custis, explained: “To be honest I didn’t even hear it at first but as soon as it was pointed out to me it seemed that this was a challenge I should take on, and given United’s miserable form at the time it seemed like a challenge I could win fairly easily.
“I predicted back in January that I would need to lose 28Ib but United have picked up a bit of momentum since then and as the season draws to a close I think I’m going to need to lose around 31 pounds to win this bet.
“The generous team at Paddy Power have offered £1,000 to the winner of the challenge which will be donated to the charity of our choice. In my case that is the British Red Cross and United will probably chose the Manchester United foundation.”
Custis, the Deputy Football Editor at The Sun, will be training some 49 miles North of the scene of Van Gaal’s verbal volley at Northern Bootcamp in Northumberland.
United will face relegation threatened Norwich on Saturday, then a tough clash with West Ham in their last ever game at the Boleyn before Bournemouth on the last day of the season.
At the camp he will enjoy a non-military style boot camp utilising a team of top trainers backed with a wealth of experience from elite sport, military training and nutritional excellence.
Voluntary
Their camp is unique as it includes a variety of outdoor activities, so we could see Neil throwing himself off cliffs, or braving the North Sea. It operates a challenge by choice policy, so participants are not forced into anything, however, the “can do” attitude inspires both those hoping to lose weight and those there just for fitness reasons.
The Northern Boot Camp has venues in the North East, Wales and also Portugal and will expand further in 2017 to cope with demand.
Northern Bootcamp co-founder Dan Smith said: “We are delighted to support Neil in his challenge and we remain extremely confident that we will be able to help get him across the finish line for his challenge.
“It is brilliant that he has already been training and is committed to achieving his goal, now with a focused week of hard work and healthy eating we know he can succeed.
“We believe very strongly that Northern Bootcamp is not simply about exercise or beasting participants. This is about creating a change of lifestyle which includes a blend of exercise, healthy eating and a genuine understanding of how we fuel our bodies and why.
“The camp is the beginning of a journey for those who attend and designed to be a launch pad for the rest of your life and we have every confident in Neil winning his challenge but more importantly helping him to make long term life style change.”
Based in the stunning countryside participants live on site in a beautiful converted farm house with a typical day beginning at 7am with exercise following by a healthy breakfast.
A morning exercise session is followed by lunch before an afternoon ‘fun’ group activity
with an Abs session to finish before an evening meal and the chance to relax.
Delicious meals are carefully portioned to provide just enough energy for the day and participants are taught how to replicate the delicious menu at home.
Follow Neil’s Progress
Follow Neil’s progress throughout the week on The Northern Boot Camp Facebook (facebook.com/northernbootcamp) and Twitter Feed (@northbootcamp) using the #PoundsVPoints
For PR and Media opportunities regarding Neil’s Custis challenge or The Northern Bootcamp contact Onside PR at info@onsidepr.com or +44(0)161 207 2323