Man spotted skiing 'naked' around Padiham for charity

Gavin Norris put on his skis, a helmet, thong and nothing else skied around his home town on Tuesday (January 16).

The 47-year-old was even spotted escaping the cold in a pub, where he enjoyed a pint of Guinness.

Gavin Norris in the pub after skiing around Padiham (Image: Gavin Norris)

It was all for a good cause and Gavin pulled the stunt to raise money for charity, in memory of his mum who died last October.

Gavin said: “When I heard about the snow forecast I mentioned that I would go naked skiing around Padiham one day to raise money for charity, just winding people up.

“When it snowed on Tuesday my friends turned up with their sponsorship money in hand – I  hoped people had forgotten about it!”

Despite the -5°C temperatures, Gavin spent three hours skiing around Padiham.

He said: “It was a but cold but it wasn’t too bad once you start moving.

“Cars were blasting their horn at me, people took videos of me skiing probably thinking ‘this can only happen in Padiham’.

“I told people what I was doing it for – they thought I was just a local idiot.

“There were a lot of bemused faces.”

More than just a funny stunt, Gavin did this in memory of his mum Pauline Norris, who died last October, aged 68, after a battle with breast cancer.

Pauline Norris died last October (Image: Gavin Norris)

He is raising money for Pendleside Hospice, a charity that was close to his mum’s heart.

At the time of writing, more than £3,200 has been raised so far.

Gavin said: “I told people I would release a video when I hit £600 but we hit that target in around 45 minutes.

“Mum would be thrilled to have this event in her memory and that so much money has been raised - but I’m sure she wouldn’t be happy that I was skiing in my underwear to get the money.

“She always said ‘I drove her to despair' sometimes.”

Pauline had been battling cancer for decades, after first being diagnosed with breast cancer aged 42.

Gavin said: “Pendleside was a charity close to her heart, especially after she was diagnosed with cancer aged 42. She often donated money to the charity and would help them fundraise.

“This is my way of dealing with grief, instead of getting upset and angry.

“The money will do so much good for the hospice.”

Gavin’s daughter, Elise, is also raising money for the hospice, in memory of Pauline.

She is attempting to walk 10,000 steps every day in January. 

For Gavin’s fundraiser, click here.

For Elise’s fundraiser, click here.