Hi - I'm Max. Firstly, a huge thank you for visiting my fundraising page. In case we've not met before, I'd like to introduce myself. I'm a full-time veterinary surgeon, and have been for the past 33 years. Our company has chosen Dogs Trust as our Charity of the Year, and since I love running, it made sense for me to put my legs to good use.

In May 2018, I am travelling to the Far East to complete my biggest running challenge in years. To start off with, I'm running a Half Marathon on the Great Wall of China, then a week later I fly to Bhutan to run the Thunder Dragon race; another Half Marathon with the added challenge of it being at altitude in the Himalayas. The Great Wall race has 5164 steps in it just to make it slightly harder (it's listed as one of the world's most difficult races of this length), and I am informed that some people have to use their hands and feet to get up the steps. If the two races weren't tough enough, I have decided to additionally challenge myself by running them both barefoot. Yes, you read that correctly...

I love training and I'm always up for a challenge, particularly if it involves something unusual. I am self-funding this trip, which is costing me £5700, and, with your generous help, I am hoping to raise the same amount for Dogs Trust. Can you support me by making a donation towards my £5700 target? 

I started my running journey way back in 1990, and, together with a massive change in my diet, used this "power combination" of exercise and a healthy plant-based diet to recover from serious illness. My recovery story is documented in my book The Fatigue Solution - www.thefatiguesolution.co.uk 

I'm a committed kind of person (many would say stubborn) and I always "give it everything" in training. I have to date run 3 marathons (one of them barefoot), participated in many endurance races and have climbed several mountains; most notably Kilimanjaro in 2012 (funnily enough NOT barefoot). Whatever challenge I set for myself, I like to thoroughly prepare.

Despite working 10 hours a day in the practice, I'm following a demanding training regime, which occasionally sees me still on the treadmill at 10pm on weekday evenings. Additionally I am doing strength, conditioning and endurance training at the gym with my personal trainer twice a week. 

It's important for me to know that every pound I raise for charity is going to the right place. As a vet, I'm delighted to be fundraising for Dogs Trust since they are a well-established charity, whose mission is to bring about the day when all dogs can enjoy a happy life, free from the threat of unnecessary destruction. They will never put a healthy dog to sleep. Their strapline "A dog is for life, not just for Christmas" really resonates with me in today's "throwaway" society. In my profession, I have sadly come across many instances of dogs being cast aside by their owners when the novelty of ownership has worn off. 

Knowing that my training efforts will result in funding for a great cause, I'm striving hard for continuous improvement. In March 2018 I ran the Surrey Half Marathon and came 7th in my age category. I amazed myself by having shaved a full 9 minutes off my time for the previous Half Marathon I ran, just 4 months earlier. I'm delighted to be seeing the results of my hard work and dedication to my training.

Thank you so much again for taking the time to read this page. Can you help me to raise £5700 for this very worthwhile cause? I'm not the strongest. I'm not the fastest. I don't have long legs like the really good runners do. But I'm tough, I'm determined, and I never give up. Let's do it for the dogs!

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