MY Bob Graham training partner has injured his Achilles.......
Now on hearing the news my first thoughts should have been of sympathy and of hope for his speedy recovery.
But they weren’t.
My initial reaction - and I am ashamed to admit it - was still one of hope..... hope that it wouldn’t get better for at least the next six weeks and we wouldn't have to do this god forsaken run!
There I said it. (Sorry Ian)
I felt exactly the same when in April 2004 I was about to undertake the challenge of a lifetime and run over 150miles across the Sahara Desert in the notorious Marathon des Sables. (MdS)
I spent the week before the race bursting into tears as the slightest thing, praying for some horrendous injury to prevent me from going and saying emotional farewells to family and friends who I was convinced I would never see ever again after either being stung by scorpions or buried alive in a sand storm.
The MdS actually turned out to be one of the best experiences of my life.
It was also the toughest physically and emotionally (there are no plugs for hair straighteners in the Sahara). But the overriding sense of achievement at completing this gruelling event totally made up for the blood, sweat and tears - of which there were plenty.
And I know that I will feel exactly the same when - and not if - Ian and I complete the final stage of the Bob Graham together.
Now in preparation for the run I keep reminding myself of a conversation I had with fellow MdS competitors who I shared seven days of my life with in Tent 49.
We were talking about why we had decided to do the MdS and that few people understood why you would choose to put yourself through such an ordeal.
Tent mate Simon Howell said he had always been inspired by the saying: “A ship in the harbour is safe - but that is not where ships are meant to be.�
And that goes at least some way to explaining why we were all there.
I am a great believer that new experiences strengthen our characters, shape our personalities and with the success of achievement so comes inner confidence and self esteem.
After all, if we never reach we will never grow.
We all need goals to work towards, whether that be something as extreme as the MdS or taking part in this year’s Race For Life. It might even be something as simple as cycling to work instead of taking the car or using the stairs instead of the lift.
It is good to take yourself outside your comfort zone and challenge what you thought your were capable of.
Set yourself a goal - you might just surprise yourself.

Ben Hammesrley took part in the MdS the same year as me. Read his account of the race here

More information about the event can be found here or at
the MdS official site

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