Darren Grigas – Adventure Athlete
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  • 17th November 2019 Adventures, Blog, Challenges, Featured  1

    A world-first 127 mile foot-crossing over the 55 million year old Namib

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  • 9th March 2018 Adventures, Blog, Challenges, Featured, Race reviews  2

    100 miles of ice!

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  • 7th April 2017 Blog, Challenges, Race reviews  5

    14 hours in the hands of the Special Forces

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  • 29th September 2016 Adventures, Blog, Challenges, Race reviews  1

    Running the inaugural Cape Wrath Ultra, a truly Beautiful Behemoth

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Events, Featured

30th September 2022

Spanish Coast – Mind & Body Retreat

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Events, Featured

27th August 2022

Through the Mill – A challenging grind for body and mind

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Events, Featured

27th August 2022

The Dragon’s Tail – Running, Biking and Hiking Wales

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PSHE

Blog, Motivational talks

2nd February 2020

Talking to the children of Fulbridge Academy

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Blog, Motivational talks

21st May 2019

An invite to Buckingham Palace

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Blog

6th September 2020

Cycling the Green Wheel

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Adventures, Blog, Challenges, Featured

17th November 2019

A world-first 127 mile foot-crossing over the 55 million year old Namib

...

Read more

Adventures, Blog, Challenges, Featured, Race reviews

9th March 2018

100 miles of ice!

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  • PSHE

    2nd February 2020

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    Talking to the children of Fulbridge Academy

  • 21st May 2019

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    An invite to Buckingham Palace

  • 3rd November 2016

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    Talking at the Palace

  • 29th September 2016

     1 5629

    Cathedral abseil for its 900th birthday, yes please!

  • 29th September 2016

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    £26,000+ – Amazing support for Rory and family.

  • 23rd September 2016

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    Guest Speaker: Duke of Edinburgh Awards at TDA

  • 4th August 2016

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    Guest Speaking at Duke of Edinburgh Awards – Peterborough Town...

  • 27th January 2016

     1 6688

    Dumball – It’s a Goa!

  • 27th January 2016

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    Individual Fundraiser of the Year! – £18,000 for Anna’s Hope

  • 27th January 2016

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    Jools Holland Fairies for Anna’s Hope

  • 30th September 2015

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    Prince’s Trust Motivational Talk

  • 18th August 2012

     1 5124

    Pride in Peterborough Awards

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Darren Grigas

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Ever wondered how big those shipping containers ar Ever wondered how big those shipping containers are up close? About this big! 🤯 (I'm in the slightly smaller yellow boat) I was doing the maths as we paddled along the Panama Canal watching in awe as dozens of these passed us by, each with containers stacked 9 high, 20 across and 18-20 long, that's as many as 3,600 containers on every one of these monster ships! And they just kept on passing all day long, that's a lot of stuff! Remember that next time you get your order from Temu or Amazon, and then just decide you don't like it and send it back, that's a long journey for a pair of trousers 👀 #panama #adventure #kayakingadventures
A world-first run 100 miles across a giant frozen A world-first run 100 miles across a giant frozen lake will always be an amazing highlight of my many experiences. The first morning we stepped onto the giant frozen lake, the temperature was -47°c "18° colder than the south pole" we were told. 🥶 By mid-afternoon it would 'warm up' to about -30° so despite the blue skies and sunshine it was pretty fresh out there, and personal admin was pretty crucial to get right. Wear too many layers, and you'll sweat too much and that sweat would then freeze inside your clothing, wear too few and you'll risk hypothermia if you don't move enough to generate body heat to stay warm and safe. My fingers went numb after removing my top two gloves for a few seconds to grab a snack even though I still had a liner glove on. It then took 20 minutes to warm them back up again. The giant Lake Khuvsghol in Outer Mongolia freezes over for half of the year, and as lead runner within a small group on a recce for a new event, I had the challenge of running 100 miles the entire length of it over a three-day crossing. I spent much of the runtime alone, just me an the ice, aside from my local support guide never too far away on his horse-drawn sled. The ice would crack and shift with an almighty boom like thunder in the distance as it moved like tectonic plates grinding together. There are always many experiences within the experience that make it so special, and one of those many special moments was as we ate our meals around a campfire at night, singing songs and sipping vodka with our local guides in temperatures of -50° whilst in the treeline 50ft away a pack of wolves howled around our camp. That, was truly a moment to remember. You don't get such memories by staying safely in your comfort zone, so say yes to the adventure, push boundaries, reach for ridiculous goals, because that's where the magic happens. #adventure #ultramarathon #mongol100 #publicspeaker
Run and read... Or better still, listen to books/ Run and read... Or better still, listen to books/podcasts, meaning you can improve your body and mind simultaneously. I'm always recommending books to people and this is a great one. I've just been for a nice slow and steady 10km with the final few chapters of this brilliant book from @drchatterjee In my years of running I've absorbed hundreds of hours of educational books, each with potentially life changing content from experts in their fields. For just a few hours of listening you can learn key points from someone's life's work, consequently changing your perspective and understanding of life, society, mental and physical wellbeing and more, and once learned, you can't unlearn such valuable insights that could vastly improve your mindset, relationships, successes and wellbeing. Just one key paragraph from a single book could be the one that resonates and changes your understanding of yourself and others.... and all for no extra time needed if done so whilst going for a run, walking the dog, driving somewhere, sitting on a train. Give this one a listen, you can thank me later. #happymind #bookreccomendations #runner
TWO YEARS NO BEERS! I can safely say I don't miss TWO YEARS NO BEERS! I can safely say I don't miss feeling like crap after a big night out. So what am I missing?🤷🏼‍♂️ Yesterday marked two years since I last had an alcoholic drink. This isn't a flex, but a share that might help anyone considering quitting the drink feeling like they might "miss out" if they "quit". Well here's the trick, you're not missing out, you're gaining so much more than you "miss" and it doesn't even have to be forever, just long enough to change your relationship with drinking. I never had a "drink problem" as such, in fact I was pretty damn good at it, and anyone who's known me long enough will know I've definitely had my share of getting wasted (and so many hangovers! 🤮). Two years ago NYD24 I decided I didn't want or need it anymore, chasing that quick win of partying a little harder in exchange for losing a few days to the slump that followed. Many times I'd still function fine the next day, or work through it, I even ran a 3hr-33min marathon on a hangover once, so I was definitely capable of carrying on, but was kidding myself thinking it wasn't holding me back. My intial drive was that I didn't want my new venture @forestadventurecentre to fail. I wanted to be physically and mentally firing on all cylinders every single day. I aimed for a year wondering if I could navigate parties and events, and it just got easier as weeks and months passed, so here we are two years later and it rarely comes into my mind about wanting or needing a "proper drink", and if it does then I instantly think about what I'll be missing or losing afterwards if I did. I've definitely not missed out, I've been in many ways more present for parties, nights out, lads "drinking weekends" than if I was drunk, and with the right group of people there's always a 0% drink in each round without question. The importance of having the right people around you that don't say "have a proper drink" is a massive help too and much appreciated, real friends and family will support your choice. Anyone just starting dry January or thinking about cutting alcohol for a while or forever, I hope this post helps Cheers! 🍺 [0% beermoji] #soberlife #dryjanuary
New Year, New shit calendar. Heartfelt thanks to New Year, New shit calendar. Heartfelt thanks to my brother Rich Grigas for the dedication of capturing those special moments with Buddy throughout 2025, to give me this wonderful and inspiring gift that will keep on giving all year long. My particular favourites are the photos that you can tell are slightly blurred because he was shaking with laughter so much while taking them. #brotherlylove
Happy New Year to you all! We hope 2026 brings y Happy New Year to you all! We hope 2026 brings you amazing experiences, personal growth and achievements, connection and quality time with friends and family, new friends you haven't met yet, great times in new places, and a year you'll look back on with a smile. 🙏🏼❤️🥂🙌🏼
Christmas Jumpers night. 🎅❤️🤘🏼🍾🥂 A firm fixture in our festive calendar with beautiful friends and family, with friendships spanning several decades and many more still to come. It's said that you become the average of the people you spend the most time with, I feel I've got pretty good odds with this lot. Happy Christmas you wonderful people! 🙏🏼🌲❤️
A step back in time to the 1920's for a Great Gats A step back in time to the 1920's for a Great Gatsby night at @peterborough_cathedral with some of my beautiful family. Dress up, show up, say yes to something different, they're the days you remember most. #gatsby #family
After another fantastic Dirty Santas event at @for After another fantastic Dirty Santas event at @forestadventurecentre I'm feeling very grateful to have grown such a wonderful and wholesome little Forest Family here. A few years ago, this adventure centre was just an idea whilst I still sat at a desk five days a week as a web designer with a sideline in property refurbs and holiday homes (plus occasional jaunts across deserts and jungles), yet an adventure centre was born from a desire to give people the opportunity to step outside, challenge themselves and create treasured memories. I've been very fortunate to have the help and belief of friends and family giving their time and support to help me get this wild idea off the ground, and we now find ourselves at the end of our second full year, having hosted thousands of guests for team days, family gatherings, school trips and all occasions. It's simply brilliant to see this come to life, to exceed expectations and to share it all with friends and family as we set sights for many more great adventures still to come.
Early start to get set up for Dirty Santas Obstacl Early start to get set up for Dirty Santas Obstacle Run/Walk and our own team's Christmas gathering. It's going to be a beauty of a day! 🎅🌲❤️🌲🎅🎅
Fill your life to the brim!! Fill your life to the brim!!
I love that we've had a last-minute rush on bookin I love that we've had a last-minute rush on bookings for our Dirty Santas Obstacle Run/Walk on Saturday. I've got the snow machines, smoke grenades, mulled wine, mince pies and our team of Santa's Helpers ready to go, it's going to be awesome. This is only our second year but I know this will keep growing year-on-year, and as Burghley House have just agreed a further 10-year lease, I can't wait to keep growing Forest Facility Adventure Centre for a long time to come yet. We've only got about 30 Santa Suits left for the weekend, and bookings close on Friday 7pm, so if you fancy a festive day to remember it will be great to see a few more familiar faces on the startline. Book here if you're up for joining us. Forestfacility.com/dirty-santas
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Prince's Trust - Guest Speaker

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As a guest speaker Darren is a true inspiration to all. His approach to challenge, personal development and lifelong learning made him the perfect guest speaker to inspire and motivate our team. His adventures are the perfect hook to get the young people engage and his subtle but targeted “suggestions” on personal development stayed with the team throughout the twelve week programme.

Kit Lists - Everything you need for your running and adventure challenges

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If you're just starting out, or planning to cross a desert, jungle or 100 miles of ice, I share all the tips and recommended products here
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Peterborough Open Awards Centre CIC - Motivational Speaker

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Motivation and inspiration are key elements in encouraging young people to strive beyond their limiting beliefs. As a guest speaker on our National Citizen Service courses; the group listened attentively as he talked them through his various exploits as an extreme adventurer and charity fundraiser. His stories of completing the Marathon Des Sables and spending a week challenging alongside Sir Ranulph Fiennes as he became the oldest UK citizen to complete the challenge held his audience spellbound. A true motivational speaker.

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