Doing the Fan Dance for PawPrints

Hi everyone,

I am taking part in the Fan Dance (description below) to raise money for Pawprints Dog Rescue. I am training hard every week to do the best job I can on the day so please dig deep. Pawprints is run completely by volunteers and funded by kind people like yourselves!

What is PawPrints Dog Rescue all about?

"Stray dogs taken to the local council pound have just seven days to be reunited with their families before they become the legal property of the local authority, and can be either rehomed or put to sleep.

Due partly to the recession, local authority pounds throughout the UK are full to bursting, leaving no space for the dog on its eighth day when the newest stray comes in.

More dogs than ever are being euthanised, many simply because there is nowhere for them to go and their owners have not come forward or been found (a good reason why you should microchip your pets and keep those details up to date).

This is why rescues like Pawprints have been founded. We want to save as many of these dogs as possible and find them loving, forever homes.

Since Pawprints started, we have saved hundreds of dogs that would otherwise have been put to sleep."

Website : pawprintsdogrescue.org

What is the "Fan Dance"?

"The Fan Dance is a gruelling 24km non-navigational race over two sides of Pen Y Fan, the highest mountain in the Brecon Beacons. This infamous route has long been a part of SAS (Special Air Service) and SBS (Special Boat Service) Selection and is considered the yardstick of a candidate's potential to perform well on Test Week and ultimately pass the Special Forces Selection programme.

The route is a real lung buster that throws everything at you, including the elements. There are steady slopes that allow a solid jogging pace, shocking inclines that have you almost on your hands and knees, loose stone tracks that require cautious foot placements and a forested vehicle track that allows for some rapid going. Even SAS recruits at the height of their physical abilities regard beating the clock in this event as a serious challenge, and all know its capacity to hurt. Aside from the race aspect of this event, just getting to the end is an accomplishment and something to be proud of."

Website : thefandancerace.com