Dear family and friends,

Call it a mid life crisis, a pretty aggressive personal challenge, or simply call it madness, but I have signed up for the Racing the Planet Nepal multi-day endurance footrace. 

Along with another 249 or so intrepid/foolhardy/borderline mad competitors, I will spend 6 days attempting to run through the foothills/mountains of the Himalayas, accompanied by a 9 kilo backpack containing my food, medical kit, clothes, and "accomodation" (i.e. sleeping bag).

The race commences on Sunday the 20th of November with a gentle 42km run, followed by another on Monday, Tuesday, and er, Wednesday.  But these will be a mere aperitif as on Thursday we will embark on the infamous "Long March" which is approximately 75km of hills, gullies, river crossings, and other delights, all done at altitudes which frequently result in sickness and delirium. 

Oh, and then on Saturday the 26th there will be a mad dash over 10km to the finish line...Mad stagger, more like...

Not only will you have the opportunity to follow my "progress" via a blog update courtesy of the Racing the Planet website blog  (and I guarantee you there will be sweat, toil, tears, but hopefully not blood, to keep you amused) but in doing this event, I hope you might consider donating to my two charities; CWS, which supports children in Nepal, which is the poorest nation in Asia, and Crohn's and Colitis UK, which aims to improve life for everyone affected by Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), the most common forms being Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis.

'Tis the season to be jolly (well, almost) but also the season of giving, so if you're behind on your annual donations, please consider my ludicrous challenge as one you might dig deep for. 

Best wishes,

 

James