MY JOURNEY TO ULTRA
Husband & Dad. Ultra runner - in that order, I think!
I started running in 2009. Someone in work ran 10k's and asked if I wanted to come along to one. I started training and loved it. I had entered a half before I had run the 10k and a marathon just a few months later, before I had even run the half.
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Christmas 2009 and a work colleague passed away from MS and so I decided to run my first marathon in May 2010 for the MS charity his wife was wanting donations for. In April, so before Edinburgh, a very close friend lost his 7 year battle with a Brain Tumour. I needed to up the challenge given this was a very close friend, instead of a guy I didn't really know. So 3 marathons in 3 days it was - Druids Challenge. The longest day was 50k so I needed to know I could do that, so I did Nottingham Ultra Race (50k) and I loved every second of it, doing quite well actually.
So after my first ultra I thought 'well, if I can do 50k, I wonder if I can do 50 miles'. The rest is history, bar a few years out around the birth of our daughter.
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2019 was my best year of events by far. I won Enduroman 48hr - Run to the Max and came 2nd at the inaugural Bring Our Your Dead 24, from Mudcrew. I also completed by longest race KACR. We may have been last, but I got it done and at many times over that 40+hrs, I didn't think I would!
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I'm getting older, heavier and slower, and with 2 kids now, 11 & 7, I can't do the 80 mile training weeks I used to. I'm trying to do things differently and now have a coach. It makes me accountable to someone other than me. Over the years I've played with tempo, intervals and strength training, but never stuck to it with a plan. This last year, I've been plagued with calf injuries but, slowly I'm getting things together and hope to have a great 2023.
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It may even be another year like 2019!
See you on the trails!