Endurance: race results and first-person journeys

I have run marathons, ultramarathons and a few things that were mostly just very long walks in the dark. These are the race reports and the training behind them, written honestly enough to be useful if you're preparing for your first one.

Results, from the official records

200 miles
18th overall
Winter Downs 200, December 2024 · 69:14:32
Official result ↗
100 km
1st M35
100km di Torino, March 2024 · 11:46:24 · 11th overall
Official result ↗
100 miles
22:43:38
South Downs Way 100, June 2024 · finished
Official result ↗
Ironman
15:21:35
Ironman South Africa, March 2015 · my first full Ironman
Official result ↗

In my own words

My own count, not an official result.

30 before 30
Marathons run before my 30th birthday
Read the story
4 in 4 weeks
Four marathons in four consecutive weeks
Read the story
25+ countries
Countries I've run marathons in
All endurance stories
Won in Rio
My first Muay Thai fight, Brazil 2014. Unsanctioned bout; watch it yourself
Watch the fight ↗
3× TEDx
Talks including Cambridge University
Watch the talks

Race results and first-person journeys

Read in historical order. Verified results sit beside original diaries and nonfinishes; uncertain editions stay uncertain.

11 October 2009
Verified result
Chicago: my first marathon
4:25:55 official net time; original splits in the report.
Check the result ↗
1 December 2012
Verified result
Brecon: my first Welsh ultramarathon
10:10:10 · Tied 60th in the official ITRA table. Winter 40: nominal 40 miles, contemporaneously reported as approximately 42 miles; not an official GPS distance.
Check the result ↗
12 April 2014
Verified result
Madeira Island Ultra Trail 115km
30:30:25 · 111th overall. The old 27-hour shorthand is not the official time.
Check the result ↗
August 2014
Historical diary
Lausanne: my first triathlon
1.5km swim / 40km bike / 10km run. A first-person diary, not an independently verified placing.
29 March 2015
Verified result
Port Elizabeth: my first full Ironman
15:21:35 · 1,351st overall · 115th M25–29 · Bib 235.
Check the result ↗
2023
Owner-reported nonfinish
Salisbury Plain: the 50-mile attempt
DNF at roughly mile 32. A recollection of stopping, never a 50-mile finish.
9 March 2024
Verified result
Torino: 100km and an M35 win
11:46:24 · 1st men's M35 · 11th overall · 7th male. Category winner, not overall winner.
Check the result ↗
8–9 June 2024
Verified result
South Downs Way 100
22:43:38 · 126th overall · Bib 561.
Check the result ↗
11–14 December 2024
Verified result
Winter Downs 200
69:14:32 · 18th overall · Bib 167. Planning is labelled separately from the result.
Check the result ↗

A nonfinish, then 100 miles, then 200

Three separate chapters: a 2023 attempt stopped at roughly mile 32, followed by two officially verified finishes in 2024. The later results do not rewrite the earlier DNF.

2024: verified results

A category win, then two longer finishes. Overall and age-group places remain separate.

The first full Ironman, and the work before it

The official March 2015 result alongside my original booking, Lausanne triathlon and swimming diaries.

From the first marathon to longer events

Start with the original diaries; use the overview to connect rather than duplicate them.

The first two marathons, retold

Official splits from 2009 and my own 2010 race diary.

Practical guides from experience

Frameworks and reflections, not individual prescriptions.

Travel, preparation and repeated race days

Different challenges, not one universal training plan.

The race record: from Brecon to 200 miles

Chicago begins the marathon story in 2009. My first Welsh ultra is now confirmed by official ITRA results: Brecon, 1 December 2012, 10:10:10, tied 60th. Winter 40 was nominally 40 miles, contemporaneously reported as approximately 42 miles; that is not an official GPS measurement. Madeira's 115km finish on 12 April 2014 was 30:30:25, 111th. My first full Ironman followed in Port Elizabeth on 29 March 2015: 15:21:35, 1,351st overall. Torino 100km on 9 March 2024 was 11:46:24, first men's M35, eleventh overall and seventh male. South Downs Way 100 in June was 22:43:38 (126th, bib 561); Winter Downs 200 in December was 69:14:32 (18th, bib 167). Maastricht remains a separately remembered DNF with an uncertain date.

How to go from nothing to a marathon

I ran my first marathon at 23 off about three miles a week, which I do not recommend and would do very differently now. What works is unglamorous: four or five easy runs a week, one longer one at the weekend, and months of not missing them. Speed can wait. The single biggest predictor of finishing well is how many uninterrupted weeks of easy mileage sit behind you.

Marathon to ultramarathon

The jump is less about pace and more about time on your feet, eating while moving, and being comfortable walking. My 42-mile prep and the 30 hours in Madeira are both stories about food, feet and pacing rather than fitness. Back-to-back long weekend days teach you more than any single monster run.

What repeatedly goes wrong

The new result-led features distinguish checkpoint timestamps from memories, elapsed time from moving pace and planning advice from a claim about what happened. Check kit, supply access and assistance rules with the organiser for your edition. Practise the practical parts of a long event rather than treating another runner’s finish time as your training prescription.

Reader questions

Did you finish both 2024 Centurion races?: Yes. The official event trackers record Finish for South Downs Way 100 (22:43:38, bib 561) and Winter Downs 200 (69:14:32, bib 167). Each feature links to the original result.
Is your finish time a moving pace?: No. It is the whole elapsed race interval. Stops, terrain and the different events make a uniform mile-by-mile target or direct performance comparison misleading.
Can I use these stories as a training plan?: They are experience and planning reflections, not an individual training prescription. Read the organiser’s current requirements and obtain qualified advice suited to your experience.