Learning from the SAS

You can always learn a thing or two from the Military. The SAS ethos of the “Unrelenting Pursuit of Excellence” has helped them maintain their world renown as a premier Elite Fighting Force for decades since their inception in 1941.

In recent years, civilians have been able to taste one of the Selection Tests that Special Forces recruits undertake. They can take on The Original 24Km SAS Selection Challenge in the form of The Fan Dance Race. This infamous march is the world’s oldest Special Forces test and is re-created by Avalanche Endurance Events who are all ex-SAS and ex-SBS veterans. 

Open to males and females, it is a Load Bearing timed challenge with a “Special Forces” pass time of 4hrs. More than 12,000 civilians have completed the event but less than 10% have managed sub 4hrs.

This week the Directing Staff (DS) for the event told me that the “real pass time” is much lower than 4hrs. A soldier in Special Forces Selection carries a rifle, carries a pack over 55lbs/25kg and has been “thrashed to within an inch of his life for 6 days before his Fan Dance Test”. 

For “equivalence”, a Fan Dance Racer would need to put their body through the exertion of a 3hr 15minute finishing time. And on that basis less than 50 people out of over 12,000 Fan Dance Racers had ever really “passed”.

In Winter I won with a time of 3hrs 20mins. My body went through all levels of pain - I was “out of energy” with more than 1hr still to go. Then I cramped in my quads and calves as I reached the 2nd ascent of Pen-Y-Fan. But throughout, I had a determination and will to keep moving and was honoured to be first to the famous old red phone box that signifies the start and end of the race.

On July 13th I will compete in the Summer Fan Dance. They have set the bar higher for me. More than winning I want to make the 3hrs 15mins. I want to be “one of the few”. That 5 minutes I need to make up may seem trivial to some, but I can tell you it will mean a whole new world of pain to achieve. 

As the SAS will tell you a strong mind and a determination to succeed are just as important as physical strength. We will see if I make it – if not I will be content in knowing I dared to try.

In the workplace it is often a strong mind and determination to succeed that separates high performers from the rest. When you are given a task that you think is unachievable maybe it is an opportunity to dare to try!

www.thefandancerace.com