RUNNER David Greenhalgh is hot footing it to the race of a lifetime.

Later this month he will fly to Morocco for the Marathon De Sables.

That's 150 hot and gruelling miles through the Sahara Desert.

And 16-stone David has never before run any kind of race!

"I am just beginning to realise how tough it's going to be," said David, of Schofield Street, Leigh. "But it will be exciting."

It all began a year ago with a bet at work. "I read about this race and thought I'd give it a whirl," he explained.

"But I was totally unfit. I used to play a bit of rugby and football but not for about eight years."

In the past 12 months 42-year-old David has slogged the streets with about 11 miles a day and 26 at the weekend.

"It's helped but I'm not sure how much," he said. "A marathon a day for a week, carrying all your food and gear on your back, is a daunting prospect.

"And we will be running through the desert, starting near the Algerian border; we can expect violent sandstorms and searing heat.

"It's probably a race for the foolhardy, it's not a race for the faint-hearted."

David goes into the final weeks of training with his first race, a half-marathon in Bolton this weekend.

Tonight his local - the Ellesmere on St Helens Road - is hosting a Race Night as momentum gathers in his efforts to raise money for three charities . . . Christie's, Alder Hey Hospital plus the Rainbow Trust.

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