Edinburgh University students racing to Prague dressed as unicorns for MND charity

Sara Amido and Audrey Yeo will participate in Race2Prague, an annual charitable event in which fundraisers are challenged with making the 1190-mile journey to Prague from the Capital without spending a penny on transport.

The friends, who have dubbed themselves the Blizzard Ponies, picked MND Scotland as their chosen charity after spending time with their friend, Ruth Porter, who has suffered the incurable condition since 2014.

Ruth now has difficulty with her speech and balance, meaning everyday tasks have become more challenging. Sara and Audrey help out with 
shopping and go on walks with her, which is where they became inspired to raise money for the cause.

Sara, 29, said: “We had the opportunity to bond with Ruth during the walks. Her positive take on life is very inspiring and she is the reason why we chose to support MND Scotland. We’d never really heard of MND before meeting Ruth and we hope our fundraising will help all the research currently happening in Scotland to find a cure for this disease”.

The pair met three years ago at a martial arts society at University and quickly became close friends, both sharing an appetite for spontaneity and adventure. Sara, originally from Portugal, was persuaded to take part in Race2Prague by Audrey, who is from Singapore, after they attended an information session together.

Starting on February 15, they have three days to make it to the Czech Republic’s capital, relying solely on hitchhiking as their means of transport. Despite the obvious challenges involved with this, the pair are confident they will reach their destination.

“Our plan is to make ourselves stand out and hope we can drive people to help us (pun intended). We will be wearing matching rainbow unicorn onesies and will hold flashy banners. I’m not sure how quickly we’ll get there, but I’m confident we’ll make it,” said Sara.

Audrey, 26, added: “We’re also going to be selling ice-cream around the University of Edinburgh campus to raise more money”. The students even plan to busk on the streets along their way to help cover some of the trip expenses, such as food and accommodation.

Ruth said: “I’m delighted that Sara and Audrey have chosen MND Scotland as their charity in their race to Prague. To travel from Edinburgh to Prague without spending any money is quite a challenge. I wish Blizzard Ponies lots of luck on this exciting venture.”