A RED hot fundraising challenge organised by a hospice for people with life-limiting illnesses will be the ultimate test of mind over matter. The Hospice of St Francis in Berkhamsted, which is partnered with Grove House Hospice in St Albans, is recruiting

A RED hot fundraising challenge organised by a hospice for people with life-limiting illnesses will be the ultimate test of mind over matter.

The Hospice of St Francis in Berkhamsted, which is partnered with Grove House Hospice in St Albans, is recruiting courageous fundraisers to take part in their sponsored firewalk, a test of bravery which involves walking barefoot over a bed of hot coals.

Following a two-hour training session with the UK's most experienced firewalking instructor Cliff Man, volunteers will use their inner powers of fearlessness and self-belief to walk across the 20 foot-long path, which will be burning at a core temperature of over 800 degrees Fahrenheit.

Firewalking, which still forms a key religious and spiritual practice of indigenous people all over the world, is a perfectly safe practice and the actual experience is entirely subjective, with some people likening it to walking on snow and others remembering a pleasant warm sensation.

Each participant is asked to raise a minimum of �200 for the hospice - a sum which would keep their minibus on the road for a month, for example - and all proceeds minus the cost of the event will go straight to the Hospice of St Francis.

To find out more about the firewalk, which will take place on November 12 at the Watermill Hotel in Hemel Hempstead, or to sign yourself up to the challenge, visit www.stfrancis.org.uk or call 01442 869555.