THERE IS MORE THAN ONE WAY TO HELP
Tough Smudge started as a personal challenge.
It has grown into something rather bigger.
I am training towards World’s Toughest Mudder, building an increasingly busy programme of endurance events and using the whole journey to raise money and awareness for Prostate Cancer UK.
The aim now is to keep turning up.
Where practical, I want something on the calendar every month. Sometimes that will be a major Tough Mudder weekend or another serious endurance challenge. Sometimes it may simply be a race, run, walk or event that keeps the momentum going and teaches me something useful.
I am documenting the training, the events, the equipment, the good decisions and the considerably more questionable ones along the way.
Some people will want to donate directly to the charity.
Others may want to help me undertake more events, improve the content, provide equipment or services, become a commercial partner, buy some Tough Smudge merchandise or simply share what I am doing with somebody else.
All of those things help.
The important bit is being completely clear about where that support goes.
Help the cause
This is the simplest and most important way to support the charitable side of Tough Smudge.
My father died from metastatic prostate cancer in 2024. Raising money and awareness for Prostate Cancer UK is therefore not something bolted onto the endurance journey afterwards.
It is one of the reasons Tough Smudge exists.
Direct donations are made through GiveStar and go to Prostate Cancer UK.
They are not used to pay for my event entries, travel, accommodation, equipment or other Tough Smudge costs.
Every donation, however large or small, moves the fundraising total in the right direction and gives all those muddy miles a little more purpose.
Help the journey
I genuinely enjoy the training and events.
I would be doing some of this even without Tough Smudge.
But there is a considerable difference between entering the occasional event and building an ongoing programme of endurance challenges, training, videos, articles, equipment testing and charity fundraising.
Entry fees, travel, accommodation, equipment, nutrition, website costs and content production all add up.
And the more regularly I can get onto start lines, the more there is to test, learn from, document and hopefully turn into something that encourages people to follow the journey and support Prostate Cancer UK.
That is where the Tough Smudge Pit Crew comes in.
Joining through Patreon gives people a way to contribute directly towards the costs of developing Tough Smudge and helps make additional events, equipment testing and better content possible.
Patreon support is not a charitable donation and does not go directly to Prostate Cancer UK.
It supports Tough Smudge.
It also gives me somewhere to share more of the behind-the-scenes journey: event preparation, plans, lessons, early thoughts and the bits that do not necessarily justify a full public article.
If you fancy being part of the pit crew without having to stand in a muddy field at three in the morning, this is probably the option for you.
Help us do more together
I am interested in working with businesses, organisations, charities and individuals that see a genuine fit with the Tough Smudge journey.
That support does not have to mean writing a large sponsorship cheque.
Potential partnerships could include:
- event sponsorship;
- equipment or clothing;
- nutrition and hydration products;
- travel or accommodation;
- recovery services;
- filming, photography or editing;
- professional services;
- local business support;
- challenge or event support;
- introductions to people or organisations that might be able to help.
I am particularly interested in relationships where the product, service or organisation naturally fits what I am actually doing.
If something is supplied free of charge, gifted or sponsored, I will say so.
If I review or talk about a product, the opinion will remain mine.
A free pair of trainers will not magically make them the best trainers I have ever worn.
The aim is to build genuine relationships rather than simply collect logos.
If you think there might be a fit, I would be very happy to have a conversation.
There are also ways to support Tough Smudge while buying something you actually want or need.
TOUGH SMUDGE MERCHANDISE
Tough Smudge merchandise is now available, including clothing and supporter items built around the Tough Smudge branding, Smudge mascot and the increasingly muddy journey towards World’s Toughest Mudder.
Income from merchandise supports Tough Smudge and helps towards the costs of events, equipment, travel and creating the content that documents the journey.
Buying merchandise is not a charitable donation to Prostate Cancer UK.
It supports the Tough Smudge project.
KIT I USE
Some equipment and products featured on the site may include affiliate links.
If you follow one of those links and make a purchase, Tough Smudge may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Affiliate relationships will always be clearly identified.
I will only feature equipment that is relevant to the journey, and an affiliate relationship will never guarantee a positive review.
If something is rubbish, I would rather tell you it is rubbish than persuade somebody else to buy it.
Costs nothing. Helps enormously.
Financial support is useful.
It is not the only thing that matters.
You can help Tough Smudge without spending a penny.
You could:
- follow Tough Smudge on social media;
- subscribe to the Tough Smudge YouTube channel;
- watch, like or comment on a video;
- share an event or fundraising post;
- tell somebody about the Prostate Cancer UK fundraiser;
- send a Tough Smudge article or video to somebody who might enjoy it;
- introduce me to a business or organisation that might want to get involved;
- come and say hello at an event;
- suggest an endurance challenge;
- follow the journey and keep coming back.
Attention matters.
- A share can reach somebody who donates.
- A video view can help somebody discover Tough Smudge for the first time.
- A conversation can lead to a sponsor.
- An introduction can create a partnership.
- And occasionally somebody may suggest a properly daft challenge that I somehow end up entering.
None of that costs anything.
But as Tough Smudge grows, all of it helps.
WHAT DOES EACH TYPE OF SUPPORT FUND?
Keeping the different types of support separate matters to me.
If somebody gives money believing it is going to charity, it should go to charity.
CHARITY DONATIONS
Money donated through GiveStar goes directly to Prostate Cancer UK.
It does not fund Tough Smudge expenses.
PATREON
Patreon memberships support the development and running costs of Tough Smudge.
That can include event entries, travel, accommodation, equipment, nutrition, website costs and content production.
SPONSORSHIP & PARTNERSHIPS
Commercial sponsorship and partnerships support Tough Smudge in return for agreed benefits such as exposure, content, event association or product testing.
Products and services may also be supplied instead of money.
MERCHANDISE & AFFILIATE INCOME
Income generated through Tough Smudge merchandise and clearly disclosed affiliate relationships supports the Tough Smudge project.
It can help fund more events, equipment, travel and content, all of which give Tough Smudge more opportunities to raise awareness and support for Prostate Cancer UK.
WHY SUPPORT IT?
I am not pretending that I hate doing this.
I love it.
I enjoy the training. I enjoy the events. I enjoy finding out whether I can do something that, a few years ago, would have sounded completely ridiculous.
That enjoyment is what makes Tough Smudge sustainable.
Support does not pay me to endure something I would rather avoid.
It helps me do more of it.
More start lines.
More experiences to learn from.
Better equipment and preparation.
Better content documenting what happens.
A bigger audience following the journey.
And, ultimately, more opportunities to raise money and awareness for Prostate Cancer UK.
The long-term ambition is simply to see how far Tough Smudge can go.
It started with one Tough Mudder.
Now there is an increasingly full calendar, a growing collection of challenges and World’s Toughest Mudder waiting at the end of this phase of the journey.
What comes after that?
I probably should survive the 24 hours before making that problem any bigger.
One start line at a time.
CHOOSE HOW YOU WANT TO HELP
Donate to Prostate Cancer UK
Support the cause directly through GiveStar.
Join the Pit Crew
Support Tough Smudge through Patreon.
Become a Partner
Discuss sponsorship, products, services or collaboration.
Shop Tough Smudge
Support the project through merchandise or clearly disclosed affiliate purchases.
Share the Journey
Follow, subscribe, watch, share or simply tell somebody what Tough Smudge is trying to achieve.
However you choose to help, thank you.
It genuinely makes a difference.
Endure. Overcome. Make it count.