Aussie rock inspires Coogee mum to complete Marathon Des Sables
A COOGEE mum ran 250km in 40C temperatures to complete the world’s toughest foot race — with the help of some Aussie rockers
Southern Courier
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A COOGEE mum ran 250km in 40C temperatures to complete the world’s toughest foot race — the Marathon Des Sables.
There were times when Heather Hawkins felt like giving up. But she dragged herself across the Sahara Desert despite crippling exhaustion and agonising blisters.
So what kept her going?
“Midnight Oil were playing in my headphones during many of the tough times,” she said. “Music is really important to me and I had a lot of classic Aussie rock with me. Others like Paul Kelly. It really kept me going.”
The 53-year-old, who arrived home last week, started running in 2012 after recovering from ovarian cancer.
In the years since she has completed the North Pole Marathon and became the first Australian women member of the Intercontinental Marathon Club by running seven marathons in seven days on seven continents. All to raise money for research and awareness of ovarian cancer.
“I drew a lot of strength from remembering my purpose and from being grateful for this second chance at life,” Mrs Hawkins said.
“It was definitely my toughest challenge yet.”
The marathon competitors run a 250km stretch of the African desert across a week. They survive off dehydrated meals and sleep in a makeshift Moroccan Berber tent.
“Some days it was so hot, I’ve never felt that exhausted,” Mrs Hawkins said.
“It’s an intense heat that bounces off the sand into your face.
“The longest day was a 87km run, that was really tough.”
Most would hang up their running shoes after completing the Marathon des Sables. But not Mrs Hawkins.
“I’m going to do the Berlin Marathon next and then Mt Kilimanjaro,” she said. “Then I’d like to do an ultra marathon somewhere really cold. I like to do an extreme event every year.”
Her book, Adventurous Spirit, is out now. To pledge to her Marathon Des Sables fundraising efforts visit give.everydayhero.com/au/heather-hawkins.