Looking beyond the primary implications of a deadly global pandemic, the countless lockdowns we’ve all had to endure (apart from Mr Johnson and his motley crew) have led to some very strange behaviours indeed.

Along with the rest of the population, I took part in my fair share of zoom quizzes, took up baking sourdough loaves and made the most of my one exercise hour (remember that?!) running around Tooting Bec common. Whilst I have long since relinquished my dreams of becoming a dual threat Hollywood/Paxman hybrid, the running has stuck. 

For those that know me well, will know that I tend to not do things by half measures; what started as a way to stay fit whilst gyms were closed escalated into a number of marathons in 2021, leaving the only next logical step to take on the Marathon Des Sables. 

If you had asked 2019 Ant whether he’d be contemplating running a multi-stage self-sufficient ultra marathon through the desert he would have laughed you out of the room! But as I said the last two years has led to some very strange behaviour!

In typical hyperbolic fashion, national geographic described the MDS as the toughest foot race on earth. I’ll be covering ~250km over 6 days through the Sahara whilst carrying all of my equipment and food on my back. It is undoubtedly a challenge which will not come naturally for a stocky former rugby player x gym bro, but I’m incredibly excited to see what I’m capable of.

Most importantly, I wanted to use the opportunity to raise some money and awareness for the fantastic work that Street Storage do. The invaluable services that they provide to homeless people is something that has been long neglected. Imagine being homeless with nowhere to store your personal possessions, living in constant fear of the things that mean most to you being stolen, vandalised or destroyed. The physical and mental fatigue that must bring really puts into perspective how trivial a number of the challenges we each deal with on a daily basis are. Street storage go a long way to solve that problem by providing secure storage facilities to give those experiencing homelessness respite from carrying their belongings.

I will be completing the MDS to raise funds to help a truly transformative service. Please do give as you can.

Cheers!

Ant