Despite freezing conditions, two prison officers are training hard to take part in Britain's notorious Tough Guy Challenge on 31st January.
Senior Officer Martin Phillips, 40, and fellow Prison Officer Keith Burns, 34, have set themselves a target of raising more than ?1,000 for the Isle of Man’s Hyperbaric Chamber through attempting the world’s toughest assault course in Staffordshire.
Dubbed the Tough Guy Challenge: Year of the Original Heroes, this year’s challenge honours First World War veterans in memory of veteran Harry Patch, who died last year. It includes an eight-mile cross country run with numerous obstacles including fire, water, and electric shocks.
Martin (foreground) and Keith are pictured during a training exercise braving Glen Wyllin waterfall at a chilly seven degrees.
Martin explained, "Both Keith and I are ex-forces and were used to training in extreme conditions. I have been in the Prison Service six years now and Keith four years and we agreed to do this during a mad moment one night shift.
"Keith had seen something about the Tough Guy Challenge on the TV and we were both up to do the challenge to try to raise money for the hyperbaric chamber.
"The freezing temperatures have been great for training. We have been in rivers with a water temperature of 3C, and an air temperature of minus 2C. During our lunch breaks, we jog down to the beach and plunge straight into the sea for around 15 minutes at a time.
"The training has been beneficial mentally and physically – we now find that we no longer scream when we enter the cold water! We have been using the prison gym during our breaks, and the physical training instructors have taken us through some gruelling circuits, outside of our normal work time.
"We are very grateful to Ian Corkill at the 4WD Centre for the loan of a minibus, David Findlay at the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company for providing ferry travel to take part, and also Dean Cook at Diving Air Services, White Hoe, Douglas, for advice and equipment.
"Also a big thank you to the House of Fun in Ramsey for their generous donation. We have also been lucky enough to have had advice from some fellow government workers who have taken part in the event before.
"We are doing well with our fundraising, and have already been pledged over ?1,000."
Keith Burns explained his motivation for taking part, "When I left the Army, my fitness went downhill. My wife is expecting our first child on 1st June and that, coupled with the Tough Guy Challenge, has been a personal goal for me to regain my fitness level."
Anyone who wishes to make a donation can do at any branch of the Isle of Man bank to a special account in the joint names of Martin Phillips and Keith Burns, account number 14049996.
All funds will be donated to the hyperbaric chamber after they take part in the Tough Guy Challenge 2010.
