Western Morning News (Saturday)
Bill prepares for gruelling 6-day charity run in the desert
Fitness enthusiast and former WMN editor Bill Martin hopes to raise £10,000 for Parkinson’s research
THE former editor-in-chief of the Western Morning News is to run the ‘toughest race on earth’ in the hope of raising thousands of pounds for Parkinson’s UK.
Bill Martin, 55, is set to run the Marathon Des Sables – running six marathons over six days in the baking heat of the Sahara Desert.
Bill will join more than 1,000 runners from across the world as they take part in this gruelling race across endless sand dunes, rocky mountains (or jebels) and white-hot salt plains, carrying everything he needs for survival on his back.
Bill said: “After 25 years of saying ‘I’ll do that one day’ I’m now going to do it!
“In April I will join other athletes attempting to run the equivalent of six marathons in six days across the southern Sahara. It is a self-sufficiency challenge, so I will be carrying all my own food, and kit.
“I’ve been training for several months now, trying to get used to some of the distances I will have to tackle.
“I have been working with two coaches, Mark Smith at Total Fitness in Mutley Plain, Plymouth, who has been my fitness coach for five years, and Mike Wilsmore at Wilsmore Physiotherapy. Mike is a running coach as well as a physio and has been transformational in my efforts to prepare for the desert.
“I have also been testing kit, as well as all sorts of specialist foods and supplements that I will need to get me through the week. I’ve been completely consumed by the preparation as well as trying to raise money for Parkinson’s.
“I’m alternating regularly between being excited and totally terrified.”
Parkinson’s UK is the charity dedicated to finding a cure for the crippling disease which 150,000 people in the UK alone are living with. Any money raised will be split between the Plymouth branch of Parkinson’s UK supporting local people living with the condition, and research into what is the fastest growing neurological conditions in the world.
Bill added: “My father-in-law has been living with Parkinson’s for more than 15 years, and I have seen the everyday challenges and battles the disease puts in front of him and his family.
“I have set myself a whopping target of £10,000, and I know that every single penny donated to my cause will help spur me on when the going gets tough out in the Sahara.”
To support Bill in his challenge, head to his Just-Giving page www. justgiving.com/fundraising/william-martin19
To find out more about the work of Parkinson’s UK, visit parkinsons.org.uk