Ultra Running - Success - Failure & Getting Back on the Horse

Ultra-Running – Success – Failure & Getting Back on the Horse

Sport for me is a natural vent for positive and negative energy. It helps to provide me with life balance, and from a young age until my mid 30’s, I basked in the joy of playing largely cricket and rugby. From that point, life changed as general responsibility and children found me. As such team sport became difficult to maintain and having done some longer distance running in the past, I was ready to scratch an itch I had endured for a while. To start looking at some serious adventure.

Looking backwards, since 2008 I have taken part in 5 multistage Ultra Marathons. This is what they look like with some base details about location, distance, terrain and outcome.

1. 2018: BTU Peru-Jungle – 250 kms – Average heat: 35 degrees and 100 percent?humidity.?

Terrain: Mixture between thick jungle, river crossings and running in logging tracks.?

Outcome: COMPLETED - Through the painful tears I felt I wouldn’t do another one. Within a few months I had signed up to go to Namibia.

2. 2019: BTU Namibia – Desert -250 kms –Average heat: 40-45 degrees.?

Terrain: Desert, so hard packed ground and very thick and deep sand.?

Outcome: COMPLETED – Really felt that I was learning about my own approach to these races. Really enjoyed the vast beauty of the desert.

3. 2020: BTU Kenya-conservancies – 250 kms – Average heat: 35 degrees.?

Terrain: Mainly tracks and some beautiful running through thicker scrubland.

Outcome: COMPLETED - The most incredible experience I have ever had involving nature and physical and emotional development. All the races are amazing but this one is a work of art.?

So far so good…

4. 2021: Marathon des Sables – Morocco – desert – 250 kms – Average heat 55-60?degrees in the day and 30 degrees at night.?

Terrain: Dessert, so a mix of packed/deep sand and rolling dunes.

Outcome: DID NOT FINISH - Pulled out on the morning of day 4. Inadequate preparation, heat, illness all contributing factors.

5. 2022: BTU Sweden – Arctic – 250 kms – Average heat -20 - -35 at all times.

Terrain: Ice lakes, frozen forests and steady climbs and descents.

Outcome: DID NOT FINISH - Reached the end of day 1 (50kms) with mild hyperthermia and mentally dismantled.

Considering this list is quite cathartic, and it leads me to reflect that in my life it has been the setbacks and failures, sometimes painful in both cases, that have resulted in analysis, restructuring, and re-approach. The net results of the learnings from what seems like an original negative outcome, allow the grassroots of understanding how to improve and ultimately be better and create more positive results. I find failure in many cases quite enlightening, albeit the direct experience of the failure or set back is often not a lot of fun.

Marathon des Sables

Through the pandemic, several races I was due to take part in were cancelled, and so it was that at short notice I decided to go to Morocco and take on the Marathon des Sables. It was made even more attractive as a very good friend was also taking part and although not conditioned enough, I felt that my experience in Namibia would pull me through. There were a number of things I or the runners had not anticipated.

1. The decision to run the race in October rather than the normal March meant we had hit the end of the Summer, rather than the beginning of Autumn. The heat was an excruciating?55-60 degrees in the day and 30 degrees at night.?

2. Many people got very ill, very quickly. For me I just couldn’t keep anything inside for long enough to benefit. The human body is like a car, and without the right kind of fuel, in the end we start to break down. As such I was just a ticking time bomb to run out of juice.?

3. My own preparation in general was below standard. As I had moved through the original 3 successful races, I had reached a point where I couldn’t stand certain foods. My nemesis had become noodles and anything dried meat based. Mixed with rising levels of exhaustion my natural desire to eat was also very low. My personal favourite moment was when my day food rations filled with Haribo, other sweets and biltong, completely melted to leave me with a classic sugar and meat snowball. Trust me when I say, this is not edible.

4 As a point of real honesty, there were other things that I was less than happy with including my clothing and how I led up to the 10 days of the race prior to arriving in Morocco. Lessons, lessons, lessons!

By the end of day 1 I had collapsed. All the way through I was unable to keep food in my body, and by day 3 I was emotionally and physically destroyed. On the evening of day 3 I slept on the decision, but in truth it was already made that I would pull out of the race on the morning of day 4. This was a truly emotional decision and I wanted nothing more than to complete this race. Unfortunately, due to the challenge associated with the extreme conditions, and the fact I had made such good friends, in particular with my old friend Joe being there with me. We both cried as I left.

You Must Let Yourself Recover

It is so important to allow the body and the mind to recover. Other than a bit of lounging around and beer drinking by the pool in the immediate days after my exit, I didn’t do this. Instead, I started focusing on going to run an incredible race in the Swedish Arctic Circle in 4 months. Further tough lessons were coming.

Preparation Improvements

Although I was not adequately recovered emotionally, I had learnt a lot from Morocco and as a result I completely overhauled my nutrition and food plan. There was and remains a new look and feel to everything involved, and I really have to thank the members of my tent in the dessert who taught me so much in this regard.?

In the 2-week run up to leaving, my weak emotional state was further compounded by one of the worst bouts of flu I had ever had. By the time I got to Sweden I was still pretty unwell, and on the evening before the launch of the event, it still felt like I was in a brain haze. That night we camped in a tepee in -35 degrees, and surprisingly I actually slept pretty well, woken up at dawn with the excitement of getting out to the world of snowy adventure.?

The Swedish Arctic

This environment is beautiful in every way, and I made good time over the first 10-20kms, running largely over frozen lakes. Then, as the terrain changed to steep and very snowy hills, with paths marked by skidoos, it was time to slip on the snowshoes, and the race quickly unravelled for me. What followed was a desperate struggle that ultimately ended with me finishing the day/stage (50kms), with mild hyperthermia. This manifested itself in wild shaking, a complete lack of desire to eat or drink anything at all. Then also the return of the dreaded hacking cough, and with some pretty simple sign language to 2 of my friends also taking part in the race, we agreed to pull out of the race and call it a day.?

Whereas with the decision to pull out of the Marathon des Sables, I was riddled with uncertainty and regret, on this occasion I had absolutely no doubt at all that it was the right decision, and for the next 5 days the three of us slowly travelled back to populated Sweden. That travelling journey was one of the best adventures the 3 of us had enjoyed for some time. Enda and Dave, I salute you.

Enjoy Running

When I got back to the UK, I took the decision to take a proper step back for 7-8 months. Essentially to not think about the bigger projects, and that’s largely what I did. Since then, I have just loved running and doing what I want to do. I haven’t even unpacked my main bag from the Arctic! There it sits gloriously untouched and preserved.

Over this period of time my mind has become active with ideas of things I would like to do, but for now it’s still about improvements and steps. The first major step is to go back to run the Rangers race in Kenya. This will be the only race I will have done twice, and it was such an amazing experience, it seems like the right time to take on the challenge and do it again. Furthermore, this will give me a chance to really explore and action some changes across the board, in particular process and nutrition.

Beyond Kenya

Naturally the Marathon des Sables experience has been on my mind a lot, and my plan will be to get the most out of Kenya, with a view to travelling back to Morocco in March to complete this task. Beyond that I have a river of ideas for projects I would like to plan and take on. For now, my focus is entirely on life, work, training and Kenya.

Finally, to say that for the most part, running and challenge provides me with real peace, and I fully accept that it is in the setbacks that we experience the real learning. It is these setbacks through work, life and running, that I feel the best is brought out of me. It isn’t the same for everyone, and the ability to step back, process and re-set is something I am getting a lot better at. Hopefully the success of results will follow, and it is a true privilege to take part in these endeavours.

Sponsorship

I am fully aware that the current climate makes the idea of parting with money less appealing, but the money I have raised to date for various charities has done the world of good. For Kenya, we/I will be raising money for ‘Save the Rhino’, where these funds will be used to help the Rangers in their ongoing struggle to protect the wildlife contained within the conservancies.?

The Rangers are an incredible group of people, but they simply do not have enough funding to make their job as effective as possible. As such, many creatures of this world are endangered from illegal poaching and close to extinction. All I ask is that if you respect my efforts and the cause holds some meaning for you, please donate here:

Finally, to say, that if anyone wants to talk through my experiences and the subject of Ultra Running, just say the word. For now, I will be sure to provide updates on my ongoing journey. Wish me luck.

Special thanks to Kris King and his crew @ Beyond the Ultimate (BTU) who in my mind organise and run the best races in the world.?