Imagine walking 100km, carrying the equivalent weight of a large adult boxer dog? That’s what Daniel Foster, more commonly Foz, will be doing! And it’s all in aid of Mind!

Foz, a 28 year old from Lancashire has lived and breathed adventure since he can remember! He spent his childhood playing in the local woods and hills, building dens and camping in them, exploring at any opportunity. His dad took him to the Lake District for the first time aged just five and despite initially being scared of heights and hating it, he began to fall in love with the area over time and now spends around ten days a month in the fells, often solo.

Trying to Crack on with an Extra Burden

Foz chose to take part in the Thames 100KM to raise money for Mind, a charity he himself has used in the past. He also has friends in the army who’ve used them for help too - ‘it worked for them when they were in a really dark place’.

Referring to people experiencing difficulties with mental health Foz says, ”it’s like carrying a 30kg pack on your back during day to day life, trying to crack on but weighed down with an extra burden. I’ve known a lot of friends from different backgrounds be it military or civilian, sadly including myself, suffering from poor mental health and the only way I can describe it is this’.

Working with both Merrell and Mind, Foz hopes he can encourage more people to get outside and enjoy the outdoors, as this can have a significant and positive impact on mental health.

30kg is no random weight, it happens to be the base fighting weight for a British infantry soldier in Afghanistan. ‘Humping around a lot of kit for many miles was basically my job in the army. I was a light role infantry soldier, the light part being a lie ha, basically the light role infantry man has to get around with all he needs to survive on his back, he travels sleeps and fights with what is on his back’.

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One Foot in Front of the Other

To prepare for this challenge Foz has swapped his usual trail running and scrambling for distance hiking with weight. He’s under no illusion that the hardest part of the challenge will definitely be the last 30k, ‘this is the point where it becomes more of a mental challenge and you have to ignore the pain through your feet, knees and back, grit your teeth and just keep putting one foot in front of the other’. He’s aiming to complete the challenge in under 22 hours. Having trained mostly in the Lake District, the flatter terrain in the South will mean he can keep up a quicker pace than usual during the challenge itself.