Inspiring stories

Karen’s Firewalk

I had already completed a skydive for Hearing Dogs a few months prior to the firewalk, and I have to say I was not looking forward to the firewalk like I was the skydive! For the first time, a couple of hours before I was due to arrive at Hearing Dogs, I looked on the Blaze website. It reassured me as they have 100% no injury record. I was a little excited by the time I arrived at Hearing Dogs and signed my life away.

After a brief introduction from our trainer about how long he has been doing this and how he got into it in the first place he explained the physics of it to us, it’s all to do with how carbon burns. We then went out to look at the fire, smell the smoke and walk next to it to count our steps so we have the distance measured in our own minds. Eight steps for me. The Blaze team had been carefully constructing and lighting the fire whilst we were in the hall.

We all did our practise walk (minus fire!) three times. Then it was “shoes and socks off now and line up.” A few others went before me, and we all cheered them on. Then I was up. Off I stepped, the first step still on the cool grass and then on the coals, shouting a word with each step - “I AM KAREN AND I CAN WALK ON FIRE!"

It seemed like no distance, it was about 20ft, I felt like it could’ve been 40ft and I still could have done it. Whilst on the coals it felt like hot sand on a summers day temperature wise and crunched under my feet like crisp deep snow, compacting as I stepped. It’s a fantastic feeling.

Now I’m planning ahead for Blaze’s new event – walking across broken glass!