Nature & Nurture

Hi All! Thought I’d share what I got up to this weekend, as it was pretty special for me.

That’s me holding the coveted Centurion belt buckle you get rewarded with for running 100 miles in under a day.

A year later than planned, due to the postponement and eventual cancellation thanks to Covid, the race I'd now spent two years training for was about to begin. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but running further than I had ever done before proved to be the hardest race I've ever attempted.

Starting at 5:30 AM Saturday at the Matterely Bowl in Winchester, some 440 runners set off to run the length of The South Downs Way - hailed as one of England’s finest trails. What began as a warm start soon turned into a blisteringly hot day and there were moments when I asked myself ‘Can I really do this?’ When my knee started throbbing on every step I questioned whether even completing the race, let alone a sub 24hrs time was realistic. Then there were avoidable setbacks that had to be dealt with. When we took a wrong turn on the course, adding an extra couple of miles, and costing us a critical 20 minutes, it was tough getting my head back in the game.

So what drove me on?

Heading into this event you’re continually told that it’s more a mental challenge than a physical one. That’s so true, but I also think it’s a blend of nature and nurture that gets you to the finish line.

Trail running has massively helped my mental wellbeing throughout the pandemic, and I recommend it to anyone as a form of meditation and decompression - you don't have to go 100 miles to get the benefit, I promise. So if like me, you love swapping the urban for the bucolic, then hours of running just melt away as you live each step, each breath in the moment. I think we all struggle at times to be present and focus 100% of our efforts on the task at hand, so upon entering this flow-like state I find that you can generate energy that lasts for hours. Such beautiful scenery; magnificent hills; the sea always to our right; the peaceful quiet of the starlit night that gave way to a serene dawn chorus.

I knew I'd put in all the hours and hours of training to get to this point - now I just had to execute, try to relax and enjoy the view. Not too dissimilar to working in sales at the end of a quarter, really!

But were it not for the nurturing effect of those that helped me along this epic journey, whether for 5 minutes or 12 hours, this achievement wouldn’t be possible. The camaraderie with the fellow runners; my awesome pacer Ali who kept me focussed, fed and motivated; all the volunteers at the aid stations; James the Race Director who saw I was off course from my live tracker and set me right; and all the messages of support from friends and family cannot be understated. Then there are all those who have inspired me to get to the point of even comtemplating approaching the starting line - you know who you are - and your voices and spirit reverberated within, pushing me ever forwards.

Nobody does this on their own, and accomplishments like this leave me in no doubt of the audacious goals we can all achieve through teamwork.

Wishing you all a good week and success in hitting your goals!

PS. I had always set out to do this as a personal goal but a few kind folk kept badgering me to make a charitable donation in aid of this bonkers challenge. There is a charity close to my heart that I think a lot about when running, and I thought it was beginning to be a little selfish not to help those with MS when the opportunity was presenting itself. I know we're not all connected on the same networks, so if you want to learn more I've set up a funding page here. I've been blown away by the generosity and support that my little run has generated, and am extremely grateful - which more than compensates for the inability to move right now.