ARMY VETS TAKING ON THE SAHARA IN RACE
T WO Army veterans will be taking on the challenge of a lifetime in one of the toughest and gruelling races in the world. Huw Lewis and Brian Edwards will be flying out to the Sahara Desert this month to take part in the notorious Marathon des Sables, widely regarded as the toughest footrace on earth. The event takes place from April 7 to April 17.
The race sees competitors running 156 miles, carrying all of the food and equipment they will need on their challenge.g
Huw, 48, who served for 15 years with the Royal Welch Fusiliers and served tours in Bosnia and Northern Ireland, said he was taking on the challenge to become a role model for staff members at the Motivational Preparation College for Training (MPCT) in Cardiff.
He said: “Fundamentally, I run a training company which at its core is to act as an operation for young people.
“I want all my dedicated staff to be role models and it’s got to start from myself and I wanted an activity that could challenge me.
“The Marathon des Sables is the hardest race in the world and I thought that it would be enough of a challenge.” Huw and Brian, 38, from the Rhondda Valley, have already worked hard in training sessions at the sand dunes in Merthyr Mawr, near Bridgend. Huw, originally from Dollgellau, Gwynedd, but who now lives in Monmouth, said: “I am really excited to go there. It’s going to be a real challenge with the sand, the heat and the distance. “A lot of fitter and younger people have not been able to complete the course so I am feeling a little bit apprehensive but I have put in the time and effort. “So far I have lost 18 pounds and I have lost every toenail on my feet. We are averaging around 70-80 miles a week. “It has been a long time since I left the Army in 2002 but the brain is strong and determined and it has been quite enjoya able in many respects. “The physical pain and the challenge its self has taken me back to the days where I was carrying out similar activities in the forces. “What has been difficult is the realisat tion that I wasn’t as fit as I was and at a almost 50 I never will be again. “When it comes to discomfort and havin ing to carry a rucksack and acceptance of t the harsh conditions, I have lived them b before and it hasn’t changed. “The attitude the armed forces indoct trinates in you is that you must complete i it so that will hopefully help me as well.” Huw and Brian, who also works for MPCT, are hoping to raise £10,000 for the Motivation and Learning Trust ( (MLT), a charity which helps young people to improve their employability. So far they have raised £8,000. Father of one Huw said: “I set up this tr trust for young people and to help them t through difficult times and we have students with real challenges. The trust is a really positive element of what we d do and we’re really proud of it.” To donate visit www.justgiving.com/ c campaigns/charity/m-a-l-t/huwand brianmds