Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

This is the big challenge that I've been building towards over the last few years! Many of you will know that I've done the odd run here and there but now is the time to really test myself by competing in the Marathon Des Sables 2013.

The MDS is held every April in the Sahara desert and basically consists of 6 back to back marathons including one day when you do a double marathon. The little twist to this is that you have to carry all your own food, clothing and equipment for the 6 days, although you do get 9 litres of water issued per day! So basically its a self catered camping trip with the small inconvenience of having to cover over 150 miles of sand dunes and mountains........

For past events I have taken part in I deliberately havent asked people for sponsorship as I was holding back for the big one - this is it! I've set a high target of funds to raise for Yorkshire Cancer Research and please be aware that all raised will go to the charity - and not to fund my participation in the event. I am paying my own entry fee, travel etc and will not be reclaiming any of the sponsorship for reimbursement.

So every penny you give is going to a good cause - something that should spur me on over those dunes. I fully anticipate extreme suffering in the heat that can get up to 50 c, and to lose at least 80% of my toe nails so I reckon thats a good reason to dig deep and donate now!

I cant promise that I'll beat James Cracknell's position of highest UK finisher but I will try and keep in front of the 2 Dromedary that bring up the rear of the race - being chased by a camels hoof is enough to keep me going............