Update, 10th April 2009

I did it! Last week I completed the Marathon des Sables 2009! In spite of weather, damaged feet, illness going round camp and the longest & toughest stage they've ever had, I crossed the finish line!

Thanks to everyone who sponsored me and also emailed me in the desert. I'll get some pictures and words posted up in the next couple of days and then email everyone on here with the details of where to find them. My feet have nearly returned to their normal size and the blisters are healing nicely.

Mike.

Mike's Marathon des Sables Run

On the 26th March I'm flying out to Morocco to take part in this year's Marathon des Sables (MdS) race. This is a footrace through the Northern Sahara desert where competitors need to cover approximately 150 miles in 7 days while carrying all their food & equipment for the week. The organisers provide old-fashioned cloth tents for you to sleep in at night & water at checkpoints, but apart from that, you're on your own!

Typical daily mileages are 25, 34, 38, 82, 42, 22 km, spread over 6 or 7 days depending on how long you take to complete the "long day". As well as a full marathon distance on the second last day, the third day is traditionally "dune day", spent crossing some of the Merzouga Dunes, pictured left. All this while carrying your 12-15 kg rucksack and on some pretty tired feet.

I've spent the last year training for the race and during that time completed three road marathons in the UK with my rucksack as well as two one-day ultra-distance races in Scotland & Wales. Most weekends I can be found in the local Pentland or Lammermuir Hills doing my long runs (or wobbles as they've become affectionately known). Over the next while I'll be building up to back-to-back 20 mile hill runs on a Saturday and Sunday to get my body used to going long on subsequent days.

I've wanted to take part in the MDS for many years, but never felt I'd ever be fit enough to consider it seriously. I then decided that the only way to get fit enough would be to enter it. So here I am, training for a 7 day ultra race in the Sahara Desert in the middle of a Scottish winter. With temperatures expected to be between 40°C & 50°C, I'm hoping that the snow doesn't last much longer.....

As this event is something unique in terms of its location and its certainly going to be challenging, I wanted to take the opportunity to raise some money for a charity and one which has significance to me.

I'm trying to keep my blog up to date with information on my last few weeks of training and the now bigger challenge of trying to finalise my kit list and more importantly what to eat. I'm also hoping to send back email updates after each day of the race and have them uploaded to the blog.

Mike's Desert Blog

Yorkhill Children's Foundation, Ward 2B

My nephew Samuel Adams was born in October 2007 suffering from Meconium Aspiration Syndrome and Group B Streptococcus Septicaemia (GBS is the most common cause of life-threatening infections in newborn babies in the UK). The prognosis for Samuel was that it was very unlikely that he would survive the first 24hrs.

Following an emergency air transfer to Ward 2B (Neonatal Surgical Unit) at Yorkhill Children's Hospital in Glasgow, Samuel was placed on ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation). ECMO is used when treatment with a ventilator has not worked or there is no other treatment available. When a baby is on the ECMO machine, the blood is being given oxygen just as it would if the lungs or heart were able to function normally.

ECMO treatment is only available in four hospitals in the United Kingdom and Yorkhill is the only hospital in Scotland to offer the life saving treatment. ECMO costs £40,000 per child per week. Without ECMO treatment and the care of the specialist staff at Ward 2B Samuel would not have survived.

How to donate?

Every single penny that I can raise will go directly to Ward 2B at Yorkhill. I have paid for my race entry, kit & other costs myself.

Donating through Justgiving is quick, easy and totally secure. It's also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Yorkhill Children's Foundation gets your money faster and, if you're a UK taxpayer, Justgiving makes sure 25% in Gift Aid, plus a 3% supplement, are added to your donation.

Thanks for visiting my fundraising page & taking the time to read it. I've been amazed by the generosity and support of everyone so far and keep sneaking my fundraising total up as a result! It really means a lot to me and hopefully I'll do you all proud.

So please sponsor me now!

Thank you,

Mike.