Fundraising
Oliver Steed conquers the Sahara
Oliver Steeds (cousin of Louise Coote) took on the world's toughest race, the Marathon de Sables. Here's Oliver's story:-
777 competitors from over 30 countries lined up on the start-line and for one brief moment we stood as one. a week of physical and mental torture ahead of us. all there voluntarily except for one group from Japan who had unfortunately won top prize in a popular TV show (sado-masochism makes popular entertainment over there apparently!)
The race was split into 6 stages of varying lengths and terrains: Stage 1: 20 miles - meant to be a warm up! Stage 2: 26miles; Stage 3: 26 miles; Stage 4: 52miles (charming); Stage 5: 26 miles; and Stage 6: a mere 13 miles. At the start-line it was clear that I was the most injured and carrying the most weight (rations, clothing, energy supplements, sleeping gear, cooking gear and 200 Marlboro lights). I also took the first prize of the event: the only person to visit the medical tent before the race even started! As I'd ripped my calf muscle a month before the start of the race, I decided to take every day as it came....
Judgment Day came on Day 2: 40 miles into the race with 120+ miles to go - a 800m high, 1 in4 sand mountain standing imperiously in my path, a mountain that an hour earlier had seen a healthy man collapse and require heart massage and helicopter medical evacuation. Half way up my calf tore again. It's at times like these when you have to look deep inside and ask yourself: why am I here? Is this really worth it? I strapped my leg up immobilizing my calf muscle and my walking poles became my crutches, crutches that were to rip deep blisters into my hands. The desert is an incredibly humbling place and knowing you have 140 miles to go with one good leg, shoes of blisters, a rucksack turning my back into a mogul field of sores, a sun addling my brain in temperatures topping 50 degrees, people around me dropping like flies, life strangely returns to a glorious simplicity of taking one step at a time.
With my head down trucking through the miles, the ground started to talk, and slowly divulged the meaning of life: the secret is there is no meaning, no answers, no question, nothing; dust to dust; that's it. When I realized this everything became hilarious! There is only a one letter difference between compete and complete... and after a combined trudging/hopping/crawling time of 67 hours I'd completed the worst week of my life.
So was it worth it? To date we've raised over £12,000 and so every minute of pain equated to £3 to Lupus. My pain cannot even begin to compare to what Lupus sufferers experience and that is what kept me going - the knowledge that every minute I continued would go someway to helping people with Lupus. Every donation kept me going and despite volunteering for this lunacy I find all my sponsors just a little bit responsible for the pain I suffered and yet eternally grateful for their support. I salute you all.
About the Marathon Des Sables
Man was not designed to run 6 consecutive marathons. The Sahara Desert is a place for camels not for humans. The Marathon Des Sables - 6 days, over 150miles, carrying over 15kg of kit, navigating yourself, in temperatures topping 50 degrees and dropping to zero - it's no wonder this is billed as the toughest foot race on earth!
Home > Fundraising > Supporters in Action > Oliver Steed conquers the Sahara
Oliver Steed conquers the Sahara
Oliver Steeds (cousin of Louise Coote) took on the world's toughest race, the Marathon de Sables. Here's Oliver's story:-777 competitors from over 30 countries lined up on the start-line and for one brief moment we stood as one. a week of physical and mental torture ahead of us. all there voluntarily except for one group from Japan who had unfortunately won top prize in a popular TV show (sado-masochism makes popular entertainment over there apparently!)
The race was split into 6 stages of varying lengths and terrains: Stage 1: 20 miles - meant to be a warm up! Stage 2: 26miles; Stage 3: 26 miles; Stage 4: 52miles (charming); Stage 5: 26 miles; and Stage 6: a mere 13 miles. At the start-line it was clear that I was the most injured and carrying the most weight (rations, clothing, energy supplements, sleeping gear, cooking gear and 200 Marlboro lights). I also took the first prize of the event: the only person to visit the medical tent before the race even started! As I'd ripped my calf muscle a month before the start of the race, I decided to take every day as it came....
Judgment Day came on Day 2: 40 miles into the race with 120+ miles to go - a 800m high, 1 in4 sand mountain standing imperiously in my path, a mountain that an hour earlier had seen a healthy man collapse and require heart massage and helicopter medical evacuation. Half way up my calf tore again. It's at times like these when you have to look deep inside and ask yourself: why am I here? Is this really worth it? I strapped my leg up immobilizing my calf muscle and my walking poles became my crutches, crutches that were to rip deep blisters into my hands. The desert is an incredibly humbling place and knowing you have 140 miles to go with one good leg, shoes of blisters, a rucksack turning my back into a mogul field of sores, a sun addling my brain in temperatures topping 50 degrees, people around me dropping like flies, life strangely returns to a glorious simplicity of taking one step at a time.
With my head down trucking through the miles, the ground started to talk, and slowly divulged the meaning of life: the secret is there is no meaning, no answers, no question, nothing; dust to dust; that's it. When I realized this everything became hilarious! There is only a one letter difference between compete and complete... and after a combined trudging/hopping/crawling time of 67 hours I'd completed the worst week of my life.
So was it worth it? To date we've raised over £12,000 and so every minute of pain equated to £3 to Lupus. My pain cannot even begin to compare to what Lupus sufferers experience and that is what kept me going - the knowledge that every minute I continued would go someway to helping people with Lupus. Every donation kept me going and despite volunteering for this lunacy I find all my sponsors just a little bit responsible for the pain I suffered and yet eternally grateful for their support. I salute you all.
About the Marathon Des Sables
Man was not designed to run 6 consecutive marathons. The Sahara Desert is a place for camels not for humans. The Marathon Des Sables - 6 days, over 150miles, carrying over 15kg of kit, navigating yourself, in temperatures topping 50 degrees and dropping to zero - it's no wonder this is billed as the toughest foot race on earth!
Home > Fundraising > Supporters in Action > Oliver Steed conquers the Sahara
