Just One Foot in Front of the Other
50 Kilometres isn’t that far, right? Under an hours drive depending on the roads and traffic. 50k, now it’s starting to sound even shorter. This year I decided to challenge myself to walk 50k in one go, by taking part in Ultra Challenge’s event the Jurassic Coast Challenge.
I hadn’t walked that distance before, neither had I visited the Jurassic Coast so I had no idea of the terrain or inclines that awaited me. The word ‘ultra’ meant nothing to me until a friend expressed that they were impressed I was taking part in one. It was then that the penny dropped, the ‘walk’ was longer than a marathon - I never thought that I’d participate in a marathon let alone walk straight in to something longer. I’d be lying if I said that this realisation didn’t increase my anxiety about the event and thoughts of ‘I probably should have done some training’ ran through my mind. But I enjoy walking, so I was ready to give it a go.
A group of us from work had signed up to the challenge.
Setting off on the walk it became apparent that we had all gone into it with different mindsets and strategies. A colleague and I formed our own mini-group, staying together throughout, setting our own pace and pulling each other through. On the walk I realised I was chasing a scenario I frequently found myself in when I was younger. As a teenager I was a Colour Sergeant in Army Cadets and I was missing the physically and mentally demanding tasks you complete as a team. Phrases like ‘you’re as fast as your slowest man’ and ‘being a unit’ sprung to mind. As an individual you are responsible for pushing yourself to your boundaries, and when you reach that boundary your team are there to push you that little bit further.
The cliff that I don’t wish to meet again
The Jurassic Coast Challenge pushed me and my team to its limits! The terrain was monstrous, the day was a gorgeous 30 degrees and slowing baking us, calling on all the energy we could summon. I’m glad to say that the gruelling coastal hills we had to climb did pay off when you reached the summit and were able to marvel at the breathtaking views. On arriving at the event in the morning we read on the route card that our final checkpoint was actually at 57k rather than 50k.
Now it may not sound like a lot, but mentally that 7k made a huge difference.
We dragged ourselves to the 42k checkpoint broken with a hint of heat exhaustion - myself in particular mentally crushed by a certain steep cliff I never wish to meet again. It was at this point a few of us had to call it a day, including myself.
Take Two
Chiltern 50
42k along the Jurassic Coast was incredibly tough and a major achievement, but as I expected all I felt afterwards was disappointment for not reaching the target distance. To remedy this I found another 50k walk to take part in a couple of months later. Now, if I failed the Chiltern 50 I’d just need to find another walk. Slightly better prepared this time - but not by much - and with a couple of friends I managed to talk into coming with me, I was ready to go again. This time we dropped the car at the end of the route and got a transfer to the start, not giving ourselves much option other than to finish. Again, we took it at our own pace and had a wonderful time. Most of the last leg was jogged due to the fact that my feet had fallen to pieces and the motion was easier on them. I just wanted to ‘get there’.
The most enjoyable part of the second walk for me was crossing that 42k mark knowing that I had the energy to pull myself to the finish!
And I did :)
Both events were incredibly well organised. Ultra Challenge do an amazing job at making sure the trails are well signposted, checkpoints well stocked and all participants looked after! 2018 was the year of the 50k, hopefully 2019 can double that...
The Fitbit stats were also quite impressive. The two on the left are from the Jurassic Coast and the stats on the right are from the Chiltern 50.
“I once read that I should write something worth reading
Or I should do something worth writing about”