Pursuit of the Impossible
Tag: ultramarathon
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Training for your first ultra feels like stepping into the unknown. You read plans, watch YouTube, scroll Strava, and still feel wildly underprepared as you approach race day. Looking back now, after multiple ultras, long nights, failed race plans and hard-earned lessons, there are a few things I’d absolutely do differently if I were starting…
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I’ve been running in the 361 Taroko 5 for the last few weeks on everything from muddy technical singletrack to tarmac and a couple of faster tempo efforts on the trails. It’s the kind of shoe that makes you rethink what “do-everything” trail shoes can actually do, comfortable and quietly capable. Here’s the full breakdown.…
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For a long time, the 100-mile ultra has been the gold standard of ultra running. It was the distance. The pinnacle of ultras. The mythical, brutal, “you’re either crazy or committed” race. But lately? It feels like that crown is shifting, and the 200 mile ultra is quietly becoming the new summit of endurance obsession.…
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This week on Ultra Insights, I sit down with one of the UK’s most accomplished ultra runners, Damian Hall. With a win at the 2023 Spine Race, two appearances at the legendary Barkley Marathons, and multiple Fastest Known Time records to his name, Damian Hall is not only a fierce competitor but also a coach…
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There’s something weirdly intimate about an ultra runners pack. But it’s full of ultra essentials. It’s like a survival kit, a comfort blanket, a mini kitchen, a pharmacy, and sometimes… a crime scene of crushed snacks, sticky gel packs and damp layers. People always ask, “What do you actually carry for these distances?” So here…
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Now my racing season is over, I’ve had time to look back and reflect. To look at the positives and the negatives and the lessons I’ve learned. I arrived at the start line of my first race of the 2025 season, the Chester 100 Mile Ultra fresh and with ambitions high after a solid block…
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They talk about it like a myth. The pain cave. A dark place where time slows, the body screams at you, and your mind starts whispering and telling you to stop. But if you’ve ever run far enough, you will know it’s real. And strangely, it’s where the magic happens. What Is the Pain Cave,…
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Crossing an ultramarathon finish line should feel like the ultimate high. Months of training, sacrifice, long miles in the dark, it all builds to that one moment when you finally stop running. But what no one really talks about is what comes after. When the medal is in your hand, the data has been uploaded…
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The Manchester Backyard Ultra. My final race of the 2025 season, and my second attempt at this brutal, beautiful format. After finishing 4th last year with 25 loops, I came into this race ready to dig deeper and go further. No targets this time though. No ceiling. Just me, the trail, and the will to…
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In every ultra I’ve run, Chester 100, The Bacons Way 100, Race Across Scotland (RAS) 215, among others, there have been many things that tested me. The miles, the heat, the elevation, the night, injury. But if I had to pick one common thing that carried me through more than any other, a place that…
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There’s always a moment in every ultramarathon I run, Beacons Way 100 Mile, Ultra Scotland, Ultra Trail Snowdonia, The Race Across Scotland, when the sun drops behind the mountains, and the world in front of me reduces to the small globe of my headlamp and the deafening silence with nothing but the sound of my…
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I still remember the moment I passed the marathon mark in my first 100 mile ultra. My watch clocked over at 42.2km, and for a split second I felt that familiar satisfaction of finishing a marathon. Then reality hit me, I still had another 120km to go. The legs were fine, but the voice inside…
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I arrived Friday at lunchtime, checked into my hotel, and dropped off my bags. After helping the GB Ultras team set up the race HQ, I grabbed a pizza, then returned to my room to organise my race kit and drop bags. Registration started at 5:30pm, so I picked up my race number, caught up…
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Running an ultramarathon isn’t just a longer version of a marathon, it’s a completely different challenge. Distances of 50K, 100K, 100 miles, or even multi-day stage races push your body, mind, and gear to their limits. Having the right equipment isn’t optional; it’s a survival strategy; it’s the difference between failure and success. In this…
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UTMB 2025 is just around the corner. Every August, the French town of Chamonix becomes the beating heart of ultra-trail running. The Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) isn’t just a race, it’s the ultimate endurance challenge, the world cup of ultra running! What is UTMB and Why is it the Holy Grail of Trail Running? The…
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If 2024 was the warm-up, 2025 is the full send. The Backyard Ultra, those deceptively simple, soul-crushing endurance events, have exploded across the globe this year, and it’s not just the elites chasing glory. From scout huts in Manchester to sun-scorched loops in Madeira, runners of all levels are toeing the line for a race…
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That’s race 3 out of 4 races completed for the GB Ultras 2025 100-mile Grand Slam series. The Race Across Bannau Brycheiniog, the Brecon Beacons National Park! The Beacons Way 100 mile ultra is just over 100 miles starting from the ruins of Abergavenny Castle and following the Beacons Way National Trail all the way…
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A full ten years ago, the Clifton arrived as Hoka’s first everyday road shoe to disrupt the market. Its oversized midsoles, pillowy softness, and curved geometry felt alien but worked so well that competitors soon adopted the innovations. Today, Hoka refines rather than reinvents, focusing on perfecting comfort, protection, and guided transitions rather than raw…
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Ultra running isn’t just about logging miles; it’s about mastering your mindset with mental training. As races get tougher and distances stretch longer, mental resilience has become just as crucial as physical conditioning. Whether you’re prepping for your first ultramarathon, aiming for a top finish in a 100-mile race or taking on a life changing…
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When I reflect on my own recent first DNF at the UTS 100km, the reality of post-race depression hit me with a force I never anticipated. I’d always kind of dismissed the idea, how could not finishing a race possibly leave such a mark? But after succumbing to heat exhaustion 20 hours deep into a…
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The Helvellyn PRO Carbon Z-Poles V2. Performance Tested in the Ultra Scotland 100-Mile Ultra, by GB Ultras The Helvellyn PRO Carbon Z-Poles V2, crafted by Harrier, stand as a testament to how thoughtful design and high-quality materials can elevate performance across challenging terrains. Recently, I put these poles to the ultimate test during my latest…
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This past weekend I revisited the stunning Southern Upland Way in Scotland as I took on the Ultra Scotland 100 miler, organised by GB Ultras. After running the whole of the Southern Upland Way from coast to coast in 2024, I was looking forward to revisiting sections I ran in the pitch-black last time, in…
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Chester 100, that’s my first race of the season completed. And which will hopefully be leg 1 of 4 of my GB Ultras 100-mile Grand Slam 2025 attempt. After completing this race twice before, in 2022 and 2024 I knew just what to expect and knew when and where I could improve. But, at the…
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I have now added the Beacons Way Ultra 100 miler to my 2025 race calendar. This will by leg 3 of 4 of my attempt at the GB ULTRAS 100 mile 2025 grand slam. The race takes place on Saturday 26th July 2025, has over 6,000m of elevation gain and has a 40 hour cut…
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I’ve been testing out the recently released (official UK release date 15th February 2025), 361 Futura 2 for about 8 weeks now and have been impressed with their performance so far. After testing out the Lynx model from 361° previously and absolutely loving them, I expected a lot from the Futura 2. The Futura 2…
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It’s been a while since I’ve done some mountain training with some real elevation gain, since I completed the Race Across Scotland 215 in fact, back in August 2024. So about time I got some serious climbing into the legs in preparation for this years events! Enter – Yorkshire 3 Peaks. If you’re a trail…
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Keeping your heart rate in Zone 2 (about 60–75% of your max heart rate) during an easy run is key for building endurance and aerobic efficiency. A rough guide to workout your max Heart Rate to get you started is 220 minus your age. For example, for a 40-year-old, take this away from 220, this…
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Listen to your body! Quality miles beats Quantity every day. There is no set amount of weekly training miles you need to hit when in training for your ultramarathon. It will depend on your physical fitness levels, your experience, your daily commitments, the distance you are training for and so on… I’ve had training blocks…
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A new race added to the calendar, the Ultra Scotland 100 mile with GB Ultras. Taking place on 7th June and will hopefully be leg 2 of 4 for my attempt at the 100 mile Grand Slam for 2025. This race takes on 100 historic miles across the beautiful Southern Upland Way. Starting at St…
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The backyard ultra race has been around for nearly 14 years now, after the first one being held in 2011 in Tennessee. Invented by the famous endurance race designer Gary ‘Lazarus Lake’ Cantrell, who invented one of the toughest races on the planet, the Barkley Marathons. The backyard ultra has been growing steadily in the…