“We wanted to provide a way for the whole family to get involved,” said race director James Elson. “Not just our own dedicated community of runners, but the partners, children, parents and everyone else.”

And now over 3000 people have signed up. They can run anything from 5k up to 100 miles from 00:01 Monday 25th May through to Sunday night. Whilst some are doing their distance all in one go the Centurion Running coaches have been advising athletes to spread the running across the week.

“It’s a great opportunity to try something new with your training. Push the mileage a little as part of the challenge and adapt your future training because of it”.

100 mile is the favourite

Of the 3000+ sign ups there’s been well over 1000 in the 100 mile distance. Maybe expected from a community used to covering the distance in one go, but somewhat surprisingly the 100 mile training week is a new concept for many.

“People will have covered this distance in race week before, but we get a huge range of training mileage in ultra running” said the GB 24hr runner. “It’s been interesting as the community has been alive with different plans for the week”.

The hope is that we see some example of social learning theory as the week goes on. The experienced community will provide  support for each other, as is often the case. The advice online might not always be solid, but it normally comes from a good place and the Centurion coaches on hand to help too.

Not your normal checkpoint. Photo: Stuart March/Centurion Running

The whole family involved

What’s brilliant about this event though is the wider community engagement. “We didn’t want to just put on something for our runners, but their whole family too.”

“When you run an ultra, especially 100 miles, it really isn’t a solo event,” smiled Elson. “On race day you have support from friends, family and our army of volunteers. But also in the weeks and months before the children get used to Mummy going out on her morning long run or your friends realise you’re going to start running with the club instead of going down the pub.”

So the event means the wider family can get involved and young and old have answered the call. Proud parents who supported their grown-up children to run ultras for years can finally join in the fun. As well youngsters, who look up to their parents heroics, can pin on a race number to earn their own medal, safely over the course of a week.

Starting early

Some could not wait to start. Fortunately not all are in the UK, so Fergus Edwards, based in Tasmania, made use of the nine hour time distance to start at 00:01 UK time, but at a more civilised local time of 09:01. The accomplished ultra distance runner is running the 100 mile distance over the course of the whole week.

Anna Buckingham wanted to make the most of the bank holiday. The experienced ultra runner decided she didn’t want to hang about so set off around midnight to run her 50 mile. The St. Albans Strider clocked 7:46:19 and finished in time for breakfast.

Don’t think that everyone is going wild though. Upon hearing of Anna’s early morning escapade Centurion coach Sophie Grant was quick to point out that some of us were still enjoying their morning coffee.

France based 24hr runner Sarah Cameron is taking on the 100 mile week with her son going for 50k, whilst Irish international  Nicola Duncan has recruited her hound Senna to the challenge too. We’re not sure if bribery by sweets/biscuits were involved in either case, but all have already clocked up some miles.

A potentially unknowing Senna is all keyed up for 50k this week.

The action should hot up as the week continues with leaderboards for all distances from 5k to 100 miles. The clock starts as soon as you do your first run and finishes when you compete the final mile. Ross Barkley won’t be winning this week.

Still time to get involved

The entries are open all week, although if you’re opting for one the bigger distances best to get chipping away at those miles earlier on. If you want to become part of the Centurion Running Community this week then jump on here.

So far over £7,000 has also been raised for NHS Charities Together and over £1000 will be donated to the Trees, not Tees initiative set up earlier this year.

Another beautiful aspect of the community is that runners donated entry spots for those who have been affected financially by the current situation. This means anyone who wants to get involved still can.

You can follow along with #centurioncommunity on Instagram if you need to see some pictures of wonderful running across the UK & Worldwide, with runners signing up as far afield as Tasmania and South Georgia, the island made famous by Sir. Ernest Shackleton.

Now, I’ve signed up to the 50k week so best get out for a morning run to kick things off. Got to be sensible when returning from injury.

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At the Six Days in the Dome event in Pettit National Ice Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, organised by celebrated ultra runner Joe Fejes, there is a host of ultra runners going for impressive distances, but Zach Bitter has started the event with a bang.

The previous record of 11:28:03 was set by Oleg Kharitonov in 2002, at Crystal Palace track in London. It was a race between the Russian and his compatriot Denis Zhalybin, who slowed in only the last couple laps and was beaten by Kharitonov (but still finished in 11:29:32).

Arizona based Bitter has had several attempts at the 100 mile distance on track and his previous best had been a 11:40:55 from 2015 at the Desert Solstice Invitational in Phoenix, Arizona. This time he really hit the nail on the head by not only breaking 11:30, but going under 11:20 too.

This mark the end of a long mission for Bitter, who runs in the zero-drop Altra shoes and has run the 100 mile distance 11 times in his career, getting closer to perfecting it each time.

The race goes on…

It seems that Bitter did not stop at the 100 mile distance, but continued to improve his own 12 hour world record mark and cover over 168.7km in that time period. This was a record that Bitter took from the all time great Yiannis Kouros a few years ago.

The event, which on a 443m indoor track, is still ongoing with other runners competing over as long as six days. Olivier Leblond is currently over 200 miles into the 48 hour race and has covered 200 miles in 33:39:03, whilst the six day race is just about to get started.

Both records in US hands feet now

Two years ago Camille Herron broke the women’s 100 mile world record with a 12:42:39 to win the Tunnel Hill 100 in the US, which is run along a disused railway line that has been converted into a running trail.

Herron went on to set a world 24hr record of 162.9 miles last December. 

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In a throwback to the heyday of British ultra running, when the likes of Don Ricthie, Cavin Woodward and Eleanor Robinson were running the fastest times in the world, Centurion Running race director James Elson is putting on an invitational 100 mile track race just to see some fast times.

The event will take place at the Julie Rose Stadium, in Ashford Kent on 7th September 2019. A 6:00am start means that everyone can be back home in bed at a sensible time on the Saturday night, or down the pub celebrating if they choose.

“I’ve wanted to organise an elite level 100 mile race for a number of years.” said the British international 24hr runner. “As a fan of the sport, seeing Mark Perkins pushing to the limit at Crawley [12 hr track race] in 2015, when he ran 12:04 for 100 miles, was one of the top handful of incredible moments I’ve witnessed.”

Elson was recently at the Desert Solstice Invitational in Phoenix, Arizona, where Camille Herron set her 24hr World Record, and the event is a shining example of how to encourage quick runners to push themselves to the limit. The whole focus is on fast times and making it as simple as possible for the athletes to excel.

RELATED: Camille Herron talks about how she broke the 100 mile world record

“The idea is to try to bring the best of British together at one event, to push each other in a racing environment and where the most optimal racing conditions allow for them to chase British and World Records.” although the ultraruning coach knows that athletes from further afield may well be interested in the event as well and it is limited to 20 starting spots.

Who can race?

Setting the criteria for entry was undertaken by a team of experienced and knowledgeable ultra runners and coaches, with the aim of allowing a good depth of field, but also ensuring it is an elite event. With only 20 spots and a desire to see a good level of male and female runners test themselves in the 100 mile discipline, the standards had to be high.

Runners will run in the first three lanes with the race’s official checkpoint and any crews to be set up in Lanes four and beyond. The idea is to keep the handing of food and hydration as simple as possible, without the athletes having to slow down or divert from their racing line too far.

Anyone who meets the criteria below can apply for an invite to the race and Elson would like to see a good standard of runner attending, with a full scope of criteria from marathon up to 24hr running. If you know a runner this would be perfect for then, let them know.

The records

The British records for 100 miles are pretty solid. Scotland’s Don Ritchie is a former world record holder and his 11:30:51 set at Crystal Palace track back in 1977 is still the best mark for a Brit.

Only two British runners have ever broken 12 hours and Cavin Woodward was the other. Woodward also held the world record before Ritchie, in a historic run that saw him also set a 50 mile (4:58:53) and 100k (6:25:28) world record en route. Possibly one the greatest performances in ultra running history back in 1975.

The British women’s record is held by Eleanor Robinson with a 14:43:40 set in Milton Keynes in 1990. It was almost broken last year when Tracy Dean ran 14:48:17 in Germany, taking a wrong turn on the point to point race in the final stages.

The world records for 100 miles are held by Camille Herron (12:42:40 in 2017) and Oleg Kharitonov (11:28:03 in 2002) at Tunnel Hill, USA and Crystal Palace, UK respectively. To see either of these records come under attack would be a wonderful thing to watch.

In the build up to launching the event the Centurion team also compiled a list of the top British 100 mile times to go with the race launch. The list can be viewed here and certainly some new names will be added in September 2019.

The startlist

So far there are two names on the startlist, GB and Scotland International Debbie Martin-Consani and yours truly. As a fan of the old school style of ultra running, where quick marathoners just ran as fast as they could for as long as they could, it seemed a good step on from a 2018 marathon PB to try my hand at the track.

As James says “this event hopefully harks back to the 1970s and 1980s when many of the best marks were set.” The aim is to try and join some of the best of British ultra running, like Ritchie, Woodward, Robinson, Mike Newton, Dave Dowdle, Martin Daykin and Tom O’Reilly on a list of top British 100 mile times.

To make it the best race we can there needs to be a good standard of runner across the field, so if you’re interested and you meet the qualifying criteria, where else would you rather be than running around a 400m track 402 times this September… maybe don’t answer that.

The other two events announced

The other two races announced were a one-off 100 mile version of the masochistic Wendover Woods 50 miler, that sees athletes take on ten loops of the tough, hilly woodland course but in July, rather than the normal winter date of the 50 mile event. A little less sadistic maybe.

Excitingly there is also a relaunch of the Piece of String race, where no one knows just how far the race will be at the start. Runners must keep going until they are told they have finished. The race previously ran in 2012, 2013 and 2014 and was labelled “the world’s most pointless race”. It is the brainchild of peculiar chap James Adams, who has apparently written a book about ultra running.

Men

24 Hour: 228km+
100 Mile: Sub 15:30
12 Hour: 128km+
100km: Sub 7:40
6 Hour: 77km+
50 Mile: Sub 6:15
50km: Sub 3:10
Marathon: Sub 2:30

Women

24 Hour: 208km+
100 Mile: Sub 17:00
12 Hour: 118km+
100km: Sub 8:40
6 Hour: 69km+
50 Mile: Sub 7:00
50km: Sub 3:40
Marathon: Sub 2:55

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