A COMPUTER sales director from west Wiltshire is preparing to tackle one of the toughest endurance races on earth.

Giles Greenslade, 32, of Haygrove Close, Warminster, will be taking part in the Marathon Des Sables, a 150-mile run across the Sahara in Morocco. The race begins on April 9, and the competitors toil for seven days in ferocious heat across uneven, rocky terrain, while carrying all their supplies in a rucksack.

To make the competition even tougher, water is rationed and handed out at checkpoints along the route. "I've never even run a competitive half-marathon before," said Mr Greenslade who is running to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Relief. "I wanted to do it for a challenge. If I was to run something like the London Marathon I'm pretty confident that I'd complete the course, but with this the question is can I complete each day."

He hopes to raise between £4,000 and £5,000 for Macmillan, a charity he chose because of his own experience of the impact of cancer. Last year his stepmother and one of his mother's friends died of the disease. After a year in training, Mr Greenslade feels physically up to the challenge, although he has experienced some injuries along the way.

He said: "I have been out doing a lot of running, mainly along the tracks and hills of Longleat Woods, so most of my training has been off road. "I've been practicing running with a 10kg rucksack which is what I'll have to carry in the desert, and I've also been going to the gym.

"Horridges Gym in Warminster gave me free membership for a year, so that I could prepare properly, so I'm very grateful to them. "I also have to thank Pat Laarberg from Frome Physiotherapy Clinic. I don't think I'd be competing without the help she has given me in overcoming injuries."

The only aspect of training that he has found difficult to replicate in west Wiltshire has been running in sand.

In the Marathon Des Sables, 15-20 per cent of the route is sand dunes, so Mr Greenslade is expecting to get rather a lot of sand in his shoes. "I would have liked to have had more practice in the sand, but I've been restricted by injuries," he said.

  • To find out more about the race or to sponsor Mr Greenslade, contact him on (01985) 214861.