These days, many of us take part in running mass participation marathons.
A brave number even attempt a triathlon to test themselves still further, but incredibly there is an elite few who will push themselves to the furthest extremes of endurance and try the unbelievable challenge of running 100 miles!!
This is the challenge that was attempted recently by two colleagues from Wincanton’s Distribution Centre for Screwfix in Stafford, as they set out on a dark September morning to attempt the Robin Hood 100 Ultra. This is just what it sounds – a race through the Nottinghamshire countryside over a distance of 100 miles!
(Putting it in perspective, this is the equivalent of running almost four full marathons in one go!)
Not only do competitors set out to run this distance within a 30-hour time period, they will have trained intensely over many, many months to get themselves in a state of fitness to be able to do this without inflicting major damage to themselves.
This was the case with Tony Hill and Jez Glover (both experienced Stafford runners over relatively short marathon courses!) who decided to fulfil a long-standing ambition to conquer the ultimate 100-mile challenge of the Robin Hood 100 Ultra.
Running such a distance over so many hours meant that all competitors needed to take more than the usual supply of energy gels and drinks to fuel themselves over the course, and supplies of their own personal choice of ‘fuels’ were distributed round the course ready for collection. Anything else required, such as insulated running clothing to help competitors survive running all through the night, needed to be carried or worn.
Consequently, this was no conventional mass running event for the 60 competitors in the field accompanying Tony and Jez over their ordeal, and the drop-out rate was expected to be high as a distance of such immensity is bound to have both a mental and physical effect on anyone taking on the challenge.
The course consisted of a 20 mile stretch along the canal, 2 laps of Sherwood Forest (30 miles each), then the return stretch of 20 miles back along the canal.
Along the course, runners needed great mental as well as personal strength to keep their minds occupied for such a long period, and fortunately there were several interesting landmarks to help with this.
The field of runners passed a memorial from the war where a crew of 7 Canadian airmen had crashed and were remembered. Also a valley lined with prehistoric caves that had been the dwellings of cavemen thousands of years ago.
43 year old Tony Hill had previously competed in both full and half marathons around the country, and had wanted to take on the Ultra to push his body to the limit. During the event Tony experienced the full range of emotions and experiences of pain, elation, exhaustion, satisfaction, dejection and joy – some at the same time!
Unfortunately injury affected Tony at the 89 mile point, and he was forced to pull out of the event with severe ankle and skin injuries.
Jez Glover (47) was more fortunate, and was able to complete the course in full. In preparation for the 100-mile course, Jez had competed in several other endurance events, such as bike sportives and half Ironman distances in Mallorca and Colwyn Bay. However, nothing could have fully prepared him for what he would eventually face over the 100 miles, which included several lonely moments as well as the understandable exhaustion. Towards the end of the event on the Sunday morning he realised that he wasn’t sweating – a sure sign of dehydration! Consequently, he pushed himself on with more determination towards the completion.
As well as the toil of the event, Jez experienced some amusing moments (though not funny at the time!), such as a scene straight out of the pages of The Beano, when he slipped over on a dead fish alongside a stretch of the canal, nearly causing him to fall in; and when they got lost occasionally, resulting in adding even more miles to the course!
Jez and Tony found the event to be a great mental challenge as well as physical, and in the end 40% of the starters did not finish the course. Despite what they put themselves through on that challenging September weekend, both runners are keen to repeat the ordeal sometime in the future and attempt to improve on this year’s performance.
Anyone wanting further details for the Robin Hood 100 Ultra can find them at www.runultra.co.uk/Events/Robin-Hood-100.
