Meet Henry Moores, known on Instagram as @henryoscarmoores a 22-year-old from Macclesfield, England, is set to embark on an extraordinary journey: a 2,500-kilometre walk from Manchester to Ibiza, undertaken entirely in flip-flops, yes you heard correctly, flip-flops.  In a bid to tackle his journey we armed him with a dozen pairs of Reef Fannings, we knew it was going to be tough feat!

He's now half way through his journey and is already raising thousands for Childrens Cancer Charity 'Be More Fab' (@bemorefab_cc).  Henry took time out of his busy walking schedule to update us on his challenge.

THE INTERVIEW

Henry, You’ve already covered a huge distance on your challenge, What has been your favourite part so far?

My favourite part so far has definitely been my route through the UK. I’ve managed to build such a great community online that people were coming out to donate food, drinks and even inviting me into their houses, which has been amazing and really kept me going.

France so far has felt quite long, tiring and lonely. I’m looking forward to the Pyrenees and the buzz of some of the bigger cities in Spain such as Barcelona.

It’s quite a feat of endurance you’re taking on. What keeps you getting up each morning to tackle more miles?

To be honest, it’s not been easy. I wake up and my legs are tight and tired, and I’ve got a headache right now. It’s tough when you’re looking down the barrel of something which is potentially 50-80 days away from the start line each morning. I think it’s the goal that keeps me going, the audience behind me and certainly Florence, who is the amazing young girl we’re raising money for. 

Having so many generous donations adds a layer of responsibility to get up and go each day. People are believing in me and I’ve got to do it for them. Without Florence and the people who are supporting me, I would’ve called this off a long time ago, that’s for sure!! 

How has the support been along the way? Anyone you’d like to give a shout out to?

Obviously I have a lot of followers and supporters in the UK so a massive shout out to each and every one of them. To be honest, even in France when I start talking to people and pushing past the language barrier to explain what I’m doing, people are really keen to help. I’ve been given food, pastries and even discounted stays. There are a lot of people calling me crazy, lots of shaken up faces when I explain what I’m doing and then they’re super keen to help, so just want to give a massive shout out to everyone who has helped along the way so far, and of course for all the generous donations for the children’s cancer charity, BemoreFab.

You've already completed this journey a few years ago. What made you decide to take it up a notch and do it in flip flops?

Reef has helped me out a massive amount because without them, I don’t think the trip would have actually started. I was desperately looking for someone to come in and help me cover the cost of the trip so that it could actually go ahead, so I’m massively grateful to the whole Reef team and the support they’ve given me. It’s a bonus that they’re known for some of the most comfortable flip flops, and I’ve definitely been able to really put that to the test!

We’ve no doubt that you’re capable of taking on this challenge, but how are your Reef’s holding up covering so many miles?

I got sent 13 different pairs of Reef’s for the trip, which were all different colours and styles. I’ve only just had to put my second pair on and I’m on day number 32, so walking over 900 km and I’ve only used two pairs so far! I only decided to switch it up to a new pair because I got confused between two different sets, so ended up putting a new pair on by accident.

Other than that, I wouldn’t have even realised because the original one’s were holding up so well! When I did this challenge previously, I had to swap out my shoes every couple of days and everyone said that flip flops would just tear apart after so much walking, so it’s been amazing to be able to use some of the most comfortable and robust flip flops I’ve ever worn….and the added bottle opener gets plenty of use at the end of each day!

On that note, other than being a big fan of The Fanning flip flops because of the added bottle opener, have you got any other favourite Reef styles?

To be honest, before this trip I’d never worn a pair of flip flops in my life! I’m more of a ‘sliders’ sort of guy, so I’m super happy that Reef make some great ‘sliders’ that they’ve also sent me. Plus, they still have the bottle opener in the bottom, so I don’t have to go without one any time soon because you never know when you’ll get caught short!

You’ll certainly need to crack open a cold one when you get to the finish line. Will you be hanging up your flip flops or have you got any more plans in the pipeline for walking challenges after this one?

At the moment, I’ve no more plans after this one but I wouldn’t rule out another flip flop challenge. I’ve just been so surprised with how well they’ve held up taking on so many miles, because I didn’t think I’d get past day one. I feel like I’m walking in a pair of shoes now, so there might be more similar challenges to come….maybe ask me again at the finish line though!