The arrival of the great British summer on Saturday coincided rather nicely with my first 50 mile ultra marathon.
With temperatures soaring into the mid-20s, I was standing on the start line of a 50 mile trail ultra marathon, starting in Farnham in Surrey and finishing in the tiny village of Knockholt Pound, not too far from Sevenoaks in Kent.
Running is still a relatively new obsession of mine.
I ran for the first time in my adult life a couple of years ago, as part of a major health and fitness kick which involved a change in diet and commitment to regular exercise.
A year later I took up my place at the Virgin London Marathon, raising funds for The Jigsaw Trust who provide fantastic educational services for children and young adults with autism.
It was in the post-marathon jubilation which followed when I signed up for the North Downs Way 50, which is how I ended up in a school hall in Farnham at 7am on Saturday morning, with 200 other slightly nervous looking runners.
In the twelve months since running my first marathon, I’ve tackled a couple more and also a 50km (31.5 mile) trail marathon, as well as various other shorter races. Despite this preparation, I had no way of knowing on Saturday morning whether my body was capable of reaching the finish line with the strict 13.5 hour cut off.
As the day progressed, memorable highlights included reaching the infamous Box Hill steps after running an entire marathon. This represented the half-way point.
Getting to Reigate Hill at around 30 miles was a bit of a low point, as I had run out of water a couple of miles earlier and the heat of the day was making me feel nauseous. Some water and salty crisps offered a quick fix allowing me to plod on for the final 20 miles or so.
Crossing from Surrey into Kent, I had two more checkpoints to pass through and was becoming more confident of my ability to finish the race. Despite extended periods of walking up the hills, no other runners were passing me and for hours at a time the only reassurance I was on the right track was the red and white barrier tape marking the course at regular intervals.
After nearly 11 hours of running, walking and shuffling, my GPS watch informed me I had run 50 miles. Another mile or so of crossing fields full of cows, and I reached the finish line, delighted to become an ultra runner.
Three days later and my legs are in a surprisingly good state; an appointment with my physio this afternoon should help remove any residual soreness.
I’ve got no plans to run for another week or so, but will resume training again soon for my next big challenges.
Coming up next is an Ironman distance river swim in July, where I will literally and metaphorically be jumping in at the deep end, having not done much open water swimming before in my life.
My next big running challenge is to circumnavigate the Isle of Wight in August. I’m taking part in this 67 mile ultra marathon to raise funds for Jigsaw again and you can sponsor me at www.justgiving.com/Martin-Bamford-IOW-Challenge.
Photo credit: Stuart March Photography / Centurion Running
