A REDDITCH adventure runner and grandfather is taking on the world to help others.
Doug Richards, from Winyates Green, has an important few months ahead of him in his quest to run at least a half marathon on every continent of the planet, while raising money for different charities.
Doug, aged 69, is a regular at Arrow Valley parkrun and a run leader, and has already ticked off Europe, North and South America, Asia and Africa from his list of running destinations.
Next month he will be running a half marathon in the Australian Outback and this time will be raising funds for Midlands Air Ambulance charity.
Alongside the run in the Outback, Doug has also arranged other runs on his trip in Sydney, Brisbane and New Zealand, with friends he has met on his previous adventures around the world.
If all goes according to plan, the grandfather will then complete his seven-continent quest when he runs a half marathon in Antarctica in March of next year, the year he reaches 70 years of age.
“It is an ambition I set myself some years ago,” he said.
“I am used to climatic extremes having run in the Sahara Desert, Siberia and on the polar ice-cap in Greenland.
“It is such a privilege to be able to visit and run in parts of our planet that people only usually get to see in books or on their TV screens. It’s really an amazing experience and I feel very lucky.”
In the last three years Doug has raised more than £2,300 for the Air Ambulance, which helps both young and old and relies solely on donations to fund it.
Visit http://bit.ly/2sYEYII to find out more about Doug’s running journey.
