Right firstly I know its not a ride but think this was audacious enough for a write up
Back in January a newish friend mentioned a father's day challenge to raise funds for an small but epic charity called chapter2 who provide long term mentorship for young men without Dads. The challenge being to walk or run 100km mostly along the ridgeway (a ancient byway) between Pewsey and Reading. With the being my 21st, 18th and 1st birthdays celebration this year I was after a challenge so said yes, then thought better start running as hadn't since june/July 2020. My friend who introduced me to the event was going to walk but were a few on the WhatsApp group planning a faster event
Due to logistics, mostly train times I set off at 10am Saturday morning. Was in a group of four aiming to run as much of it as possible. I knew I wouldn't run the whole thing but wanted to push myself and also didn't want to walk for 20 ish hours. This group became 5 as a young lad joined us but by about 30km was down to three of us as people realised they couldn't run it or one guy who does monster runs just knew his legs weren't in it that day
Unfortunately for me this left me a bit in limbo as had stopped to help someone with hideous blisters so was behind the front two and well ahead of the rest. This wasn't a race but I had found my pace which was a fast walk and had to stick with it. The main stop was 42km which was classed as dinner due to when most people would hit at after 6pm but I was several hours ahead of this. I checked in with marshalls as considering waiting for next walker but was two hours ahead so forged on trying to fight the doubts in my head. The next 60ish kilometres were brutal as only saw the guy in front at stops normally ready to leave as I arrived. He was a great young lad and his feet were destroyed but he found running less painful so he just forged on
As night fell the mental battle grew, a runner out for his training as doing the route in the opposite direction stopped and chatted for a bit and reassured me was heading the right way and as the ks ticked down I became more and more determined to finish.
By this point the young lad’s mum was acting as a marshall and was so good at encouragement, robbed some paracetamol with about 20km to go having failed to reattach my first aid kit properly after helping someone sort blisters so it's possibly still out on the ridgeway
The last bit alongside the Thames into Reading wasn't particularly pleasant as was dark, early hours of morning and isolated and my legs were so tired my usual defensive method of legging it wasn't on but I worried needlessly. As I came into Reading my lack of local knowledge came clear (most participants were from the area) but I just wanted to finish so was asking people leaving clubs for directions. Got lost again heading for the church at the end but bumped into a team of street pastors who took one look at the mad man in his PE kit in the middle of Reading at 2am and pointed me in the right direction
Then my highlight, the young lad knowing I was hours ahead of everyone else was waiting to see me back. 101.95k. In a moving time of 14.45 hours. I was utterly broken, still not sure I enjoyed it but so glad I did as learnt a lot about how deep I can go. I had planned to return to hotel shower, sleep then go back to welcome my friends back but after getting out the shower shivering as my body decided it had had enough slept as long as I could
Hopefully will have time for more cycling now but on around 680km of running so far this year and think pushing to a 1000km in a year sounds like something to keep focus and I don't say this glibly it had changed me and made me much more confident in my ability to go beyond
