Tunnel firm is digging deep

Stephanie Townsend, left, and Amanda Worsley, in the pink at work, and ready for the Race for Life.

Countdown to the weekend’s big Race for Life

This big pink machine is on the move from Oldham highlighting the weekend’s Race for Life in Alexandra Park.

It was painted pink at Tunnel Engineering, the family firm at Waterhead, which is sponsoring two of the entrants.

Office staff Stephanie Townsend and Amanda Worsley will be among 2,500 women lining up on Sunday at 11am, and decided to paint up the order before it went out to boost their sponsorship in aid of Cancer Research UK.

The firm is owned by Amanda’s dad, Geoff Clarke, and has been established at Waterhead for 17 years.

It supplies tunnelling equipment for underground services such as water, sewage and other utilities, but this is the first time a machine has been sent to a client painted vivid pink. Amanda (39), of Todmorden, and Stephanie (37), of Rochdale, are entering the all-female, three mile race for the first time and have been putting in plenty of training.

Amanda said: “Stephanie’s mother-in-law was diagnosed with breast cancer and has had her first stage of treatment, so that spurred us to enter.

We have sent e-mails and faxes to all our contacts, and will probably raise over £400.”

Last year Oldham women raised £132,000, towards the national result of £44million for research into cancer.This year the local target is £135,000, to fund pioneering work at the Paterson Institute for Cancer Research in Manchester.