This Summer British ultra-runner and former European 24hr Champion Dan Lawson ran 825 miles from Land’s End to John O’Groats in less than 10 days and now the much-awaited film is released. 

Join the loveable rogue Lawson as he averages over 80 miles a day on the roads and trails of Great Britain to break Richard Brown’s 25-year-old record of 10 days, 2 hours and 26 minutes.

dmtwo media’s Dave MacFarlane joined the crew for the entire adventure and in doing so has created one of the most memorable and endearing films about ultra-running that you’ll watch this year.

The film premiered at the Kendal Mountain Festival yesterday and now you can improve your weekend by watching it on Vimeo On Demand. 

For those who missed it read about Fast Running Editor Robbie’s reflection of the adventure itself and former Fast10er James Stewart finding inspiration  on the A roads of Scotland, watching Dan hit rock bottom and get back up again. 

Photo: Dave MacFarlane

Up the whole of the UK

From the treacherous A30 in Cornwall, through England, Wales and Scotland and battling along the A9 in Scotland, the ultra-runner’s relentless progress, supported by his family and friends, is simply an inspiration.

Along the way Dan was joined by a whole host of runners, to cheer and guide through towns and cities, but also showcasing the beauty of the British running community at the same time. “The right people always turned up at the right time” said Lawson.

For those just starting on their own running journey, to experienced ultrarunners and adventurers, there’s so much for everyone in the packed 30 minutes of viewing. If you don’t come away from the film inspired to run out of the door and not stop until John O’Groats, then we can’t help you.

For just £3.75 the film is available to watch on Vimeo , as well as added out-takes and extra interview footage from the record-breaking run.

To celebrate the launch, we will also be hosting a Facebook Q&A session with Dan and his coach Robbie Britton on the Wednesday 2nd December at 7.30pm on the Fast Running account.

So if that’s piqued your interest then get on Vimeo and watch the trailer.

If you enjoy it, then tell your friends. It could even make a good Christmas present. We might be a bit biased, as both Dan and Dave are friends of Fast Running, but the film is a belter. It’ll make you smile and even gets a bit emotional, but it’s inspiring to boot.

Normally we advertise Fast Running Coaching here, but it’s Black Friday Weekend so we’re just telling people to scratch that consumer itch by going to buy a tree from Trees not Tees. We reckon Dan Lawson would approve. 

The post Breaking10: Dan Lawson LEJOG Film launched appeared first on Fast Running.

With the recent focus on the anti-doping whereabouts systems for athletes such as Christian Coleman and Salwa Eid Naser, speaking to an athlete with experience of the system seemed wise.

Dan Lawson isn’t your standard professional athlete, but after winning the European 24hr Championships in 2016 the Sussex native was popped onto a list with some of the more famous names. It was a shock to us at management level that our athlete would be included, but Dan took it into his stride. The very unique stride that it is.

Before getting into Dan’s own experience about how he managed to be at the right location for his hour 365 times in a year and also being tested seven times, let’s look at the system itself.

The way it works

Top tier athletes, from national level athletes to the likes of Olympic gold medallists and world champions, have to file their whereabouts with their national anti-doping body. For one hour a day they must give a location at which they are available for testing.  Their location is listed for the whole day, but the single hour is when they must be available for testing or fail their whereabouts.

Miss three tests in a twelve month period and you’re up for a ban. It’s pretty generous. As a clean athlete, you’d be horrified, but life happens and it can simply be a mistake.

Miss two tests (in just a 12 month period) and, as a clean athlete, you’d be absolutely gutted that it got so close. You’d make sure that there was zero chance of missing another.

Which is why when someone misses three tests we shouldn’t just put them down as disorganised, as someone who isn’t good at keeping a diary, but as someone who has an anti-doping rule violation. Just like we treat the other anti-doping rule violators. Two missed tests is generous, three is a triple get out of jail free card for a doper.

But they were tested 1000 times that year…

Why care about out of competition tests when some of these athletes are tested multiple times in competition each year?

They say that the in-competition test is more of an IQ test. With athletes and doctors knowing when they will likely be “glowing” (vulnerable to a positive test from a substance’s presence in their body), it’s relatively simple to not test positive on race day.

One imagines that even out of competition testing is a case of taking a small enough dose each evening, outside of the testing window, that it’s out of your system in the morning, so called “micro-dosing”.

So for anti-doping authorities to know where an athlete is, for one hour of every day, and be able to test them, isn’t really a huge ask for transparency.

Although some days Dan Lawson may have a tracker on him 24/7 when racing, the rest of the time it’s normally difficult for anyone to find him.

Bring in Mr. Lawson.

Dan Lawson, whilst an absolutely lovely human being, isn’t someone you’d imagine keeps a strict diary. As his coach I can say that the filling in of a training diary is a rare and unusual occurrence. He likes to sleep on the beach, spend months in a time in India and go on hours and hours of long runs on the trails.

“It wasn’t easy. It was actually really hard to keep everything up to date, especially when in places without good quality internet,” recalls Lawson.

In the course of 12 months on the whereabouts scheme the British international made sure he was in the right place, at the right time, for every one of his hour slots.

“At one point I was working at Glastonbury,” laughs the 24hr runner. “And the officers insisted they could go to the front gate and would be let in because they were drug testers. I was working 18 hour days so to make sure I was available I found a pub four miles from the festival and each lunch break I ran there, waited outside for an hour, then ran back.”

“They never came, but I always made sure I was there for the full hour. I actually lost some work because we couldn’t find a one hour slot for the whereabouts.”

Missed opportunities

Okay, so it was only one year for the then 45 year old amateur athlete, but there were still six out of competition tests within that year. One of those tests was in a rural area of India, but still Lawson was at the rather imaginatively named address when the anti-doping agent arrived. He always was.

“There was one time when someone offered me a last minute ticket to an England U17s game and I would loved to have gone, but the internet bandwidth in India wasn’t good enough to change at the last minute, so I missed out. I wasn’t taking any chances. Part of this was how a missed test would look on my whole 24hr team. I didn’t want to let my teammates down at all.”

If it was your professional job, as part of a career of being a full time athlete, then surely filling in your whereabouts is a sometimes arduous, but important part of that.

World class race walker Evan Dunfee puts it like this “Filling out whereabouts is definitely a chore, but it’s a tiny task in the grand scheme of what we sign up for as athletes.”

“I get that mistakes happen, they’ve happened to me,” says the Canadian, “and that those mistakes are more likely to burn you the more often you’re tested but unless everyone plays by the same rules the game just simply isn’t fair.”

So much so that you’d unlikely fuck it up not once, not twice, but three times in a calendar year. You’d make sure the system that alerted you to someone’s presence at the door was working or that you didn’t wander down the shops for your one hour a day.

Why we must see it like a failed test

Now think of this from a doper’s point of view. In the days of micro-dosing and new unknown substances, with the right medical team a cheating athlete might feel uncatchable. Add in the safety net of not one, but two missed tests. You never fail the test you don’t take.

Imagine if you’re doping and have all three strikes available for the 12 months ahead. You dope and instead of making sure you’re in the right place, make sure you’re not. “Oops, sorry I missed a test”.

If you’re a clean athlete, you accept the fact that three missed tests means you’re dirty. If you’re a dirty athlete you see the missed tests as a way out.

Even look at the difference in how athletes who miss tests are treated compared to those who fail for a recreational substance like cocaine or marijuana. If your choices are “get busted for EPO” or “get busted for poor diary keeping” you know which one looks better on the CV.

Maybe it’s different for individual athletes, but Lawson feels a strong responsibility for his team too. As a squad we have an UKAD anti-doping educator and try to help our athletes make informed choices around supplements.

Should we be harsher on those who miss tests?

We cannot simply say that those who miss three tests are doping. There are many factors at play and the real dopers will play into the fact that there is doubt in the system. They will appeal to the better nature of those who don’t feel the need to cheat.

One simple way is to treat those who commit anti-doping rule violations at the same level. It might seem harsh to compare someone caught taking all the drugs in the world to an athlete who wasn’t in the right place at the same time, but three missed tests in a 12 month period is quite generous.

There are flaws, and cases where the doping control officer has knocked at the wrong house or not stayed for the full hour, banging on the athlete’s door to make sure they make it home in time, but that is balanced out by stories of doping control officers calling ahead and the fact that most don’t want an athlete to miss their test. It’s their job to test them, not play hide and seek.

So next time someone describes the system as “unfair” and “overwhelming” when they miss three tests remember this: there’s 1000s of clean athletes who don’t find the whereabouts system too much to handle.

If  Dan Lawson can be in the right place, at the right time every day,  then trust me, no one should be missing three tests in a year unless they want to.

The post Three strikes and out appeared first on Fast Running.

It’s approaching 7pm on Friday evening. We are somewhere north of the Cromarty Firth approaching Alness.

I’ve been with the team since 5pm the night before. Sleeping in car for a few broken hours in a deserted Aviemore car park, driving hundreds of miles to get there and get home. I dodged trucks, ticks and got sunburn on my neck and blisters on the tops of my toes.

All to run alongside Dan for about 75 or so miles, to try and help his relentless march to the signpost at John O’Groats.

And it was worth it, and more. For at that point, as the sun shone down beautifully across the Scottish Highlands, I witnessed a resurrection that makes me want to cover The Stone Roses classic but to change the chorus to Dan is the Resurrection.

I had goosebumps watching Dan slug out mile after mile. Just five hours earlier Dan had pleaded with his crew for a rest. He was breaking down. The incessant mileage and the madness of Scotland’s most dangerous road, the brutal A9, had begun to put Dan in a dark place in both body and mind.

A team effort

I got to witness an amazing balance of athlete care, record focus and excellent decision making in what was approaching the 9th day of continuous epic endeavour. The next steps at this point could make the difference between success and failure. Too reckless at this stage could make for regrets. Not bold enough could make for regrets. The balance was delicate.

Make no mistake, this is not only physically and mentally demanding undertaking for the runner, but for their crew it is as brutal and demanding in its own way for so many different reasons.

But, where are my manners? You may have no idea what the hell I am yapping about here.

In short order. Dan Lawson set a new record running from Lands End to John O’Groats. He bested Richard Brown’s 10 days and 2 hours mark, taking it to 9 days and 21 hours (+change) and in the process beat the 10 hour mark. This is LEJOG’s 4 minute mile.

And I had a ringside seat for a small part of it.

Photo: Dave MacFarlane

The community has a front row seat

Ultrarunning is well known for its accessibility and community. I mean, you can’t just rock up and run with Laura Muir as she attempts a record run. But the average runner can spend a mile or two with Dan as he undertakes this LEJOG mission.

In fact, it is encouraged. From Penzance to Perth it was happening every day. It has the twin benefits of giving a fillip to the runner, the record chaser, whilst at the same time helping reinforce that sense of camaraderie that makes this facet of the long distance two-legged propulsion game so unique.

Meanwhile, Dan has a level of generosity of spirit – an attitude of gratitude – that makes people gravitate towards him like metal to a magnet.

Running alongside Dan for the short time I did (relative to his overall charge) was a lesson in determination and drive. His crew are exceptional. Charlotte is as focused and tough and caring as you could wish for in a partner. Always striking the balance of compassion and competition.

Robbie Britton is someone I have experience with in the GB24 team, but this is a different level, needing different decisions for different cares and concerns. As Dan began to wobble midway through Day 8, I watched Robbie and Charlotte get smart quickly. They understand the inner workings of their runner. Charlotte knows the man and the athlete, and Robbie the athlete and the man. That balance showed up so importantly in that moment.

Fresh plans late in the day

A new plan was hatched. A eye on how to best maintain the forward momentum needed to ensure that John O’Groats would be reached before 7am on Sunday. That was what was required to make the record happen.

I watched people come and go and give over anything that Dan needed, that the team needed, in selfless shows of support and it warmed my heart. I got to meet long time social media friends Jim Mann and Ally Beaven. Ambulance drivers shouting encouragement.

Random people with cameras rocking up in lay-bys and passing places to snatch blurred images or wobbly videos of Dan as he pushed north. Him always thanking them. Always.

Then there was Alan Rankin – the physio from the GB squad – who must have driven well over 1,500 miles to meet Dan in various locations at the end of many days just to rub some life back into his aching legs. And, of course, the indefatigable encouragement machine that is Mick Seymour. He’s my Mick Seymour on GB duty. But for 10 days he was Dan’s and Dan’s alone. Except when I needed coke and Clif bar.

As if to make the point about the way this sport is about the community, the previous record holder, Richard Brown, had used planes, bikes and automobiles to be there for the last few days and to help push Dan on. HIs interest was in seeing the record go down. His record. His mark. By his friend.

Dan Lawson LeJog 2020 Teaser from Dave MacFarlane on Vimeo.

More than just the runner, a whole community

On social media all you see are pictures of a runner. A bit of drama in the face at the smartly snapped shot, or a moment in time that cannot do the hours and days of toil, effort and emotion justice. It’s a snippet that can be positioned anyway the taker prefers it to. When you are inside the ropes as I had the honour of being for a couple of days, you see the inner workings of ambition, talent and team all combine to create legend and greatness. Which is exactly what happened here.

To see that was inspiring. It was humbling. It was something I am proud to have witnessed. It also has me google mapping. If that is a verb…

They say you should never meet your heroes. Frankly, if my experience of meeting Dan, a hero of mine, is anything to go by, I’d encourage you all to meet them and more. He is, quite frankly, amazing.

EPILOGUE: Dan and I passed an hour or so chatting as we created our dream teams for a West Ham v Celtic all star match. A nice example of how you pass time on a journey that lasts just shy of 240 hours. I have noted down both teams and may put them together for a simulated game, maybe Fast Running will post the match report one day. Jinky v Roberto Carlos (one of Dan’s wildcards) would be up there with LEJOG.

If you want to be one of the first to see the full film this autumn then the best plan of action is to follow @davemacfarlane on Instagram and join Dan and Charlotte @rerunclothing. We at Fast Running will keep you updated too. 

The post Down, but not out appeared first on Fast Running.

Ordinarily this article would have rushed out as soon as the GB 24hr runner had finished, but as part of the support team the exhaustion was a little shared.

To start, we’ll clarify that the record being targeted was the recognised ten days, two hours and twenty five minutes set by Richard Brown. The nine days mark set in 2002 is widely ignored in the ultra running community. 

What Lawson achieved this month is one of the greatest British ultra running performances of all time. To witness it first hand was astonishing and to see the depths to which he dug was inspiring in the utmost.

To quote Lawson the day after “I’m a shell of a man now. I’m empty. Hollow. There’s nothing left.”

Dan Lawson LeJog 2020 Teaser from Dave MacFarlane on Vimeo.

The optimum route

Both physically and metaphorically there will always be plenty of undulation in a record attempt this big. Having planned the route myself we aimed to take advantage of Lawson’s effortless ability to float uphill, but mainly in the early stages of the run and earlier in the day.

It was possible to cut miles from the normal 830-40 distance by taking trails and hills, both of which can cause problems for a runner in such a big endeavour. With our planned route around 815 miles and the final distance around 820 (diversions and a couple navigation errors), we were very happy with the distance.

When off the large A-roads that characterise this run for many, little shortcuts, trails and backroads were synonymous with saving time. Whether or not they were actually quicker, with a couple rough trails or hills asking questions, psychologically Dan knew he was on a shorter track. It all helps.

Dan, Debbie Martin-Consani and Edwina Sutton enjoy a brief respite from the A9 traffic. Photo: Dave MacFarlane

The right people at the right time

Another key factor were the support runners. Note we don’t use “pacers” as it was vital Lawson kept to his own pace, or effort level, throughout.

Whenever company was needed, it was there. Such is the love and community within the UK running scene people were out on the roads selflessly helping out whenever it was needed.

At other times the mindful runner wanted his own space. To get into the zone. As he would say “the universe provided”.

Never before have I seen the energy provided by other runners so visibly transfer to another. A good spirited runner could pick Dan off the floor. With a mixture of distraction, not wanting to disappoint and just sheer positive energy, each supporter played a key part in the success.

As many as possible signed the support vehicle of Mick Seymour, who had been there with Charlotte Jalley, Dan’s wife, in the 2018 recon attempt that ended with a swollen runner physically unable to continue.

An A-road buffet

One of the most impressive elements of this record was Lawson’s continued dedication to fuelling. Something he’s dedicated significant mental energy and training time to is making sure he can continue to eat on such big runs. Simply put, without it he would have ground to a halt.

With SiS Beta Fuel playing a major part, providing the baseline carbohydrate intake, cheese sandwiches, pasta and beans all featured. The support vehicle waited around 8-10 miles each time with some real food and Tailwind Rebuild protein drinks. Whilst, for large parts, the support bike (James Elson’s childhood bike kindly lent for the task) provided Beta Fuel, Precision Hydration, Shot bloks and Vimto (not all together).

Even at the lowest points, including a difficult end to day three before Ludlow, Lawson dedicated himself to eating. Early (ish) evenings meant a proper dinner each night. Scampi and chips featured multiple times, as did pizza, pasta and a baked potato with cheesy beans in Perth.

From early on mouth ulcers caused significant pain and discomfort but it didn’t stop the man from fuelling. It played a huge part in his success.

Photo: Dave MacFarlane

The ups and downs

A heavy bonk (possibly a combination of excessive sun exposure and/or low fuelling) on day three, was the first hurdle. A bath and a night’s sleep rejuvenated Lawson and each morning miles were ticked off with metronomic efficiency.

Relentless Forward Motion was his mantra and during the day he rarely stopped. Walking through each checkpoint, never once getting into the support vehicle, it was psychological as well as physical. He didn’t allow himself to stop.

Chaffing played a part and the end of each day got progressively harder but the first big hurdle waited until way past Inverness.

With fellow GB runner James Stewart in support, Lawson was falling asleep on his feet. Tired physically and psychologically of the tortuous A9, one of Britain’s deadliest roads, we stopped early for a 3 hour sleep.

Back on the road

Back out of the camper van, he moved well again. A 20km shortcut off the busy road provided a much needed respite. James Stewart, Jim Mann, Richard Brown (current record holder) and Alan Rankin (our physio who travelled 100’s of miles over 5 days of support) shared some of those miles and kept him in good spirits (as did the 8-2 Barcelona-Bayern Munich match we played on a speaker).

Despite a plan to push through to the finish, exhaustion hit again around 11pm. Slowing to a stagger, we started to worry. With Richard Brown, Jim Mann and I willing him forward, Lawson started to lose the ability to run.

At this point the support of filmmaker Dave MacFarlane was vital. There to make a film, his caring nature meant he was there to support too. Leapfrogging in half mile stints, MacFarlane made hot food on a camping stove and Lawson took a 10 min kip in the back of his van on the side of the road. It worked. Kind of.

After the 10 min sleep we made it the extra couple of miles back to the A9 and our main camper van. Another three hour sleep was needed.

The last town before JOG, Wick was a long time coming. Photo: Dave MacFarlane

The final countdown

At four in the morning on Saturday, still 85 miles from the finish, came the darkest moment. Getting out of the van we all worried Lawson couldn’t finish. He could barely use his left leg and stumbled back onto the road.

Supporting on the bike, mentally calculating when this pace would see us reach John O’Groats, things looked grim.

After picking up a little Lawson asked to be left alone. As a coach, friend and supporter it was a really hard moment, but it felt key. By leaving Dan alone we showed him our belief, our trust in his ability. Long gone was the ability to convey that belief in words as our voices and faces were full of worry.

From then on he barely stopped. In a 22 hour final push Lawson ran to John O’Groats, stopping once to hug his Mum, who had surprised him before Wick.

An early celebration

Getting to the finish around 2am Sunday morning, the celebration was muted. From experience, in a multi day effort like this, one celebrates not at the end, but when realisation dawns that you will finish.

For every moment before, the days and hours where success isn’t guaranteed, you have some self-doubt. When you get close enough that you know you will finish, you allow a small celebration. This was a few hours before the actual end.

A culmination of not just two attempts, years of ultra running and the recent training block, this record is a sum of Dan Lawson’s entire life. Every part of him played a part in this success. The team simply helped him reach his own potential.

So after nine days, 21 hours, 14 minutes and two seconds, Lawson became the first man to run the length of Great Britain under 10 days. Well done mate, you did us all so proud.

Dan Lawson ran the entire route in second hand clothes, promoting sustainability through his own ReRun Clothing. Ask yourself, “do I really need that tee-shirt?”

Want to run faster? For just £30 per month athletes are provided with a Final Surge plan for each day of the week, coaching advice from Robbie Britton and Tom Craggs, as well as access to the unique Fast Running Performance community.

If you would like more information on joining the project, click here. 

The post How deep could you dig? appeared first on Fast Running.

The women’s record has been hotly contested in recent years. In 2019 Sharon Gayter retained the record from Mimi Anderson when she ran 12 days, 11 hours and 6 minutes. This July GB 100k international Molinaro set off from the famous Land’s End signpost and arrived at the finish in 12 days and 30 minutes.

Keeping a strong and steady pace from the start, Molinaro showed real grit and determination when the weather turned up north. For those “dot-watching” or following on Instagram there were plenty of highs and lows, but the weather was a real test in Scotland.

When Lawson starts it might be a different meteorological challenge, a heat wave. The often topless ultra runner, who has been known to skirt up sand dunes like a lizard, might imagine it is a blessing. But all effort will have to be tempered in the heat, but more night running could be the answer.

There’ll be none of this sitting around for group photos malarkey this time.

The last attempt

Back in 2018 Lawson made a significant effort towards Andi Rivett’s nine day record, but ultimately came unstuck in the south west when the mega mileage caught up with him. This time round the focus won’t be on the questionable mark from Rivett, but the previous 10 day record of Richard Brown.

Last year Will Cockerell investigated the contentious record set back in 2002 by Andi Rivett, who performed well below this standard before and after. It is, alone, his only world class performance in a career of pretty average ultra running. The proof made possible by GPS units and trackers was simply not around in 2002.

So Lawson is targeting Brown’s record of 10 days and 2 hours, although he has suggested that if Rivett’s mark is at all achievable when in Scotland then he would be tempted to go through some sleepless nights. We’ll see how the crew feel about that.

It was targeting this seemingly impossible mark from the start last time that potentially caused Lawson’s implosion. 9-10 extra miles per day might not seem much, but it’s 80-90 minutes eating into sleep, recovery and eating time. There isn’t enough time in the day when you start slowing down too much.

Starting at the other end of the country, hopefully the wind is in Lawson’s favour.

The route

Starting at 5:00am on Thursday 6th August from Land’s End, the team will work their way up the country and Fast Running will be on hand to keep you updated. Well, I’ll be there helping Dan to perform to his best and can hopefully get the odd tweet and update out, but the previous sounded like we’d be in a helicopter following along.

For anyone wishing to dot-watch this fantastic record attempt then check out the tracking on the link here: We might even be able to do some British Ultra Running Podcasts on the road, as long as you’re willing to be lenient with sound quality.

The first night should finish around Okehampton, then up towards Bristol, Ludlow, Warrington, the Lake District and beyond. If you would like to come support then please be wary of local guidelines, appreciate that the whole crew if focused on Dan’s run and organise your own transport back to the start of your run.

Dave Macfarlane, who filmed Dan and I running across Jordan last year, will be on hand to try and catch the highs, but mainly the lows of such an epic journey. Fingers crossed Dan’s face doesn’t swell up just as much as last time.

Stop Shop

Whereas many might try raise money for charity during such an incredible run, Lawson has never been a normal person. With his wife Charlotte Jalley, he runs ReRun Clothing, who try and make runners think about their consumerism in sport.

So for the 10 days of LeJOG Dan isn’t asking people to donate money, but to stop spending. Constantly we are told we need to spend to boost the economy, buy new trainers when our old ones are fine and just keep purchasing shit we don’t need. We all do it, I’m guilty too.

Do you really need that new tee-shirt?

The challenge for this next 10 days is to stop shopping. Don’t buy new trainers online, think about what you already have and if you really do need that new purchase. Dan will be running the LeJOG entirely in second hand kit from ReRun and he’s asking you to just take a similar consideration.

It’s important to remember we don’t need to change the world with our actions, just change our world a little bit. You might think that it’s just a drop in the ocean if you change your own habits a little bit, but we can influence others and each small difference adds up.

Litter picking record breakers

Take Damo Hall’s focus on litter picking within his recent Pennine Way Record Attempt. Hall doesn’t think he’s cleared the whole path, but he’s making an effort, setting a good example and if we can all make a small difference in our own environment, then it can make a difference.

As we travel up the country we’ll be following Hall’s lead and trying to collect some litter from lay-bys, road sides and trails too.

It’s likely the record attempt might have a bigger carbon footprint than just staying at home, but being environmentally minded doesn’t mean you have to step out of society and live on a carbon-neutral collective in the woods.

Here’s to giving it your best

It wouldn’t be melodramatic to say that the 2018 JOGLE attempt nearly broke Dan. Many have said it’s just not possible to get back out there and really do it justice on the route, but the character of the man is that he couldn’t forget the record.

Dan Lawson has won epic adventures such as the Gobi Desert 400k and been European 24hr Champion, but this might still be his biggest task yet.

Yet if you don’t attempt those challenges that scare you then are you really ever going to discover your best. I’ll be cheering Dan on from the side of the road and if you can support, online, on the road side or by sharing some miles (or just by stopping shopping) then every little helps.

Want to run faster? For just £30 per month athletes are provided with a Final Surge plan for each day of the week, coaching advice from Robbie Britton and Tom Craggs, as well as access to the unique Fast Running Performance community.

If you would like more information on joining the project, click here. 

The post Dan Lawson to re-attempt LeJOG record appeared first on Fast Running.

With an initial goal of breaking the previous record of 14 days, set by Alfie Pierce-Higgins and Mohamed al-Sweity in 2017, Lawson and Britton planned a nine day run, with a bit of wiggle room for the unknown. It turned out there was a lot of unknown. 

The pair of insouciant ragamuffins took nine days, 10 hours and 17 minutes to cover over 400 miles of the middle eastern country’s national trail that runs from Um Qais in the north to Aqaba on the Red Sea. The route passes landmarks throughout, including the ancient city of Petra and Wadi Rum, as well as visiting some more remote parts of the nation. 

“We wanted an adventure,” said Britton “and we certainly had one. The first 160km was marked and then it was all navigation. It made for a much tougher time, but took us to some really interesting places. Some intentional, others not so much.” 

“An adventure without risk is no adventure at all so the slightly sketchy times en route, getting chased by dogs, caught out in the dark on a mountain side or losing the trail for the umpteenth time in a day made it a harder challenge but one we relished.”

The Jordan Trail

The trail was opened in 2017 as a way to highlight some of the most beautiful regions of Jordan, linking castles in towns like Aljoun and Karak to the simply stunning Dana Biosphere. The section from Dana to Wadi Rum, via Petra, has been voted one of the top hikes in the world. 

The two runners were supported by independent adventure filmmaker Dave MacFarlane and international sports photographer James Vincent. Britton’s wife Natalie White joined for the second half to aid the final push and look after the hound Petra that the runners unwittingly adopted for 200km of running. 

The stray dog from the city of Petra, hence the name, made for an interesting story as it followed the runners for an initial 20km over rocky terrain. “Petra was different from all dogs we had been warned about, she was really well natured and a born ultra runner” smiled Britton. “After the initial joy of having a companion we felt a responsibility for her as we had brought her into a quite remote desert environment.”

“The first night she slept by our tents and then we snuck her into our bedouin tent the night after. We had planned to bring her back to Petra, where more tourists would keep her well fed, but upon reaching the beach at Aqaba she was joyfully playing with another dog and the family asked if they could keep her. It was quite emotional but felt like the right thing to do.”

FKT along the way

After the initial ease into the first 160km of marked trails, which were apparently still quite difficult to follow, a GPS track was how the two progressed along the trail. “Dan and I can make good time when we know where we’re going, but at times it was very frustrating. With a newer trail and some of the more remote sections of the route there wasn’t the logical flow one might expect. Wadi after wadi was full of rocks, bushes and more rocks that slowed us down”

“We didn’t want it easy though, but it was hard to keep motivated on some of the longer days. For the first few day we chased the elusive 10km in an hour. We’d get three of four good kilometres and then either lose the trail or just come to really difficult sections through fields, boulders or the Jordanian equivalent of a rocky moorland.”

“It did come just at the right time though. We had a bit of an epic finish to day four. We left our support team up on a plateau before Wadi Mujiz and the navigation down the mountain side, with bundles of rock steps and sheer cliffs, took a lot longer than planned. It was some of the most difficult nav I had done down a mountainside and a mistake would have had serious consequences.”

“Coming up the other side to our finish for the day the light started disappearing and we only had one head torch between us. With some steep and difficult navigation on the other side too we really had to dig deep to make it up to our crew who we couldn’t contact. They were thankfully up at the top flashing their torches to help us keep in the right direction.”

“Then the next day it happened. Not one, but two 10km hours! We actually clocked along a lovely 32km in about three and a half hours. Our toughest day was followed by the most productive morning and that was a good sign of how the whole adventure was. We took joy from the good sections to fuel us for the tough times ahead. 

The finish in sight

The final sections took the runners into wilderness and some of the world’s best known landscapes. “The ancient city of Petra has been on my bucket list for many years” said former archaeology student Britton “and both Petra and Wadi Rum were regions the whole team were exited about seeing. It really felt like we earned the experience of both travelling there on foot.”

“The desert around Wadi Rum was one of the final challenges and it was more troublesome for me than Dan. He’s like a lizard skirting across the sand and barely notices when the heat goes over 30 degrees. I’m caked in a layer of salt as soon as the sun comes up and it took some real attention to detail with my hydration and electrolytes to keep strong. You might call it Precision Hydration… can you print a plug as cheesy as that?”

“Getting to Aqaba we had one or two last mountain ridges to cross and a gnarly wadi descent from the final pass. There was always going to be a sting in the trail. Stretching the legs down a sandy river bed towards the sea felt amazing, but the finish brought more relief than elation. The hard work was done, the record had been broken and hopefully one day soon we’d not be leaving a hotel too early for breakfast.”

If you are interested in seeing more about the Jordan Trail then check out their wonderful website. There will be a film made of the adventure by Dave MacFarlane and keep your eyes peeled for more stunning pictures by James Vincent photography. 

Robbie is sponsored by Odlo, Profeet Sports Lab and Precision Hydration. If you want to see the gnarly details then you can see it here on Strava or the highs and lows on Twitter and Instagram.

Are you a fan of Fast Running? Then please support us and become a patron. For as little as the price of a monthly magazine you can support Fast Running – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

The post British 24hr runners set new record of 9 days 10 hours for 650km Jordan Trail appeared first on Fast Running.

The Jordan Trail, only inaugurated in 2015, has only seem a small handful of people trek the entire trail in one push, and British runner Alfie Pearce-Higgins and Jordanian marathoner Mohammed Al Sweity were the first to run the length in around 15 days. Pearce Higgins told Fast Running though that “the main joy was not racing. It was all done at our own pace and was a fantastic way to enjoy a country like Jordan.”

The British duo are aiming to run the whole 650km length, which is about 400 miles, in under 10 days. It sounds like the distances won’t be too bad, but the trail goes over mountains, deserts and all of Jordan’s beautiful terrain in between. Hikers usually take 40 days to complete the full distance with the Jordan Trail website, an excellent resource, splitting the trail into eight sections with four or five days walking in each.

Lawson featured on FastRunning last summer when attempting the contentious JOGLE record for running the length of Britain. He fell short of the contested mark in 2018, but is targeting a six day race in May of this year to build on his already huge wealth of experience before representing Great Britain at the World 24hr Championships in Albi, France in October. 

Why?

The pair know that many these days are more captivated by FKTs (Fastest Known Times) and Britton acknowledges that this is something they have considered. “It’s always going to get people more excited if you’re talking about records and FKTs, but the main focus is to go out and enjoy ourselves. Both Dan and I love running, seeing new places and a bit of adventure so we won’t be going super wild every day”.

They won’t be taking it easy either, with a nine day schedule set out and the first day being 50 miles (80km) from Um Quais to Aljoun in the greener mountains of northern Jordan. “The top end of the trail, nearer to the capital Amman, is greener and a bit cooler, so should help me keep up with Dan, who just loves hot weather”.

The route takes hikers past some of the most astonishing sites in the Middle East with highlights including the ancient city of Petra and Wadi Rum. “I’m really excited about the sights we’ll see out there and people keep telling us how beautiful Jordan is” said ultra runner Britton. “I think people misuse certain words in the English language, with ‘amazing’ being one of the most frequent, but I honestly think it’ll get justified use for places like Petra. I can’t wait”.

RELATED: What is tougher, 5k or an ultra?

The kit

Both runners have been at the ultra game for a fair few years now and putting the kit together for an adventure like this has become a lot more succinct. They will be supported by filmmaker Dave MacFarlane and photographer James Vincent who will meet them at the end of each day and also be documenting the journey.

“Knowing that we are basically looking after ourselves for at most a day at a time makes the kit choice a bit easier” was Britton’s calm comments. “You know what you need to run for a day, it’s just making sure there are enough clean pants and socks to keep you going for nine or so more. My gear is all Odlo, one of my sponsors and Dan is running entirely in “pre-loved” clothing as part of his ReRun Clothing initiative.”

ReRun clothing is something that Lawson and his wife Charlotte Jalley have set up in the UK to help runners think about the environmental impact they are having with their clothing and kit choices. The industry is built on us always needing new kit and getting rid of perfectly usable clothing we already own.

“I fully support Dan in his mission and it’s really made me think about the way I use and look after my own clothing” says the athlete with a clothing sponsor. “The good thing about Odlo is that it’s good quality clothing and we’ve spoken about not needing huge drops of new kit all the time, but also how I can keep doing my role as their ambassador. For me it’s more about making sure I extend the lifetime of some of my kit by helping mates out, not taking race t-shirts I don’t need and just being a bit more conscious in general. I’ve still got work to do!”

“In the evenings we’ll either be staying Bear Grylls style in local hotels or wild camping en route, as most hikers do on the trail. I’ve got a super light Nordisk Lofoten ULW tent that Dan and I will squeeze into each night as it weighs under 500g and packs down into a very small bag. Coupled with some Yeti Fever down sleeping bags and a couple of Alpkit inflatable mats it makes for a really good fast packing setup that we can be self-sufficient with if we need to be. I’ll get the lot into a Ultimate Direction Fastback bag, but probably most days I’ll just use their Adventure vest.”

Food and drink

The runners are looking forward to eating as much local food, within reason, for the trip ahead and nutrition will be an important part of the adventure. Britton tells us that “I’ve got some energy drink mixes and gels that I’m taking along, but if I can get decent real food en route or stock up on some local sweets then that’s the better option. Dan will probably be chomping on nuts and dried fruit the whole way.”

“We’re happy that Precision Hydration have supported us both alongside my usual partnership and I’ll be using their PH 1500 electrolyte mix as I’m a bit of a salty chap when it comes to running in hot places. It’s about keeping a good balance for a multi-day top like this and that goes for hydration, nutrition and electrolytes.”

Dinner will again be a mix of local food and dehydrated meals when the team is a little more remote. “Water will be one of the hardest resources to manage on the trip so we’ll have to make sure we don’t run out on some of the longer sections. The guide says we need a shovel to dig for water at some of the springs, but not sure I’ll be taking one, even my lightweight ski-touring shovel.”

How to follow

The runners will be updating to Strava each day (or it didn’t happen) and can be followed on social media through Britton’s @ultrabritton handle on Twitter and Instagram or Lawson’s @therunningdan. If we’re fortunate they will have enough energy on a couple of days to report back to Fast Running to keep us updated on how it’s going and just how pretty all the archaeology is.

Robbie is sponsored by Odlo, Profeet Sports Lab and Precision Hydration. If you want to follow his training to discover what is harder, 5k or an ultra, you can also see it here on Strava or the highs and lows of Twitter and Instagram.

RELATED: The highs and lows of a sub 2:30 marathon 

Are you a fan of Fast Running? Then please support us and become a patron. For as little as the price of a monthly magazine you can support Fast Running – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

The post British 24hr runners aim to set new record on 650km Jordan Trail appeared first on Fast Running.

A team of 12 athletes will represent Great Britain at the IAU 24 Hour World Championships in Albi, France over the weekend on October 26-27.

2016 IAU European 24-Hour Champion Dan Lawson leading a senior men’s team balanced between experienced internationals and those making their debut in a British vest.

Lawson has a personal best of 261.483 kilometres, and with his previous success at the major championship, he will be an integral part of the British contingent in France.

Steve Holyoak and James Stewart were part of the European silver medal-winning team in 2018, both contributing to the overall distance covered by the top three scorers.

Oman-based Holyoak has been part of British 24-hour squads since 2012, while Stewart was the second British scorer last year.

Alongside this trio will be three athletes making their debuts in the men’s team; Grant MacDonald, Paul Maskell and Michael Stocks.

Tracy Dean, Wendy Whearity [née Shaw] and Ali Young – all of whom were part of the European bronze medal winning team from 2018 – are once again in the British fold in a six-strong women’s squad.

With only those athletes finishing the women’s race in 2018 after injury and illness impacted upon the other squad members, the trio produced a special performance to claim a podium place and will be seeking to replicate their fine displays at the world edition later this year.

They are joined by Jess Baker, who holds the biggest personal best within the women’s team at 238.713km, so she will be one to watch in France.

Sam Amend and Sarah Morwood complete the team who will head out to Albi.

“We’ve been working on developing a strong squad over the past few performance cycles and that shows with one of the highest levels of applications we’ve ever seen,” said Team Leader John Pares. “The standard across the board was excellent and we’re really pleased with the teams we have selected for Albi 2019.”

Full GB team

Senior men: Steve Holyoak, Dan Lawson, Grant MacDonald, Paul Maskell, James Stewart and Michael Stocks.

Senior women: Sam Amend, Jess Baker, Tracy Dean, Sarah Morwood, Wendy Whearity [née Shaw] and Ali Young.

RELATED: James Stewart – In 24-hour racing the team always comes first

Are you a fan of Fast Running? Then please support us and become a patreon. For as little as the price of a monthly magazine you can support Fast Running – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

The post GB name team for 24 Hour World Championships appeared first on Fast Running.

Re-Run clothing, a social enterprise set up by British international 24hr runner Dan Lawson and his wife Charlotte, aims to make runners think more about their impact and how a few simple choices could improve our environmental impact.

Lots of companies are getting behind the environmental movement, with Patagonia leading the way for decades and smaller brands, like Rockay socks moving towards sustainable materials, who felt that “its just the way that the world needs to be going, and anything less than that seems like a failure in our book”.

The simple race t-shirt is a prime example. Since setting up the project and taking in second hand kit the vast majority has been race tees. Huge amounts are still in their plastic packaging they were received in.

“We could cut out over 50% of the textile waste within the running community just by removing the finisher’s t-shirt,” says Lawson in a recent interview. “It’s always the easy option just to take the shirt. You’re at the end of a race, tired and sweaty, and someone thrusts a free t-shirt and a medal. Even if you don’t want one, you’ll probably take it.”

There are some who treasure their race tees and wear them to work for the next month straight to let their colleagues know they finished a 100 miler (or a 5k), but many just have large collections in the cupboard.

Make the t-shirt a tougher option

Lawson and Jalley aren’t suggesting we get rid of the t-shirts altogether (well they are but they realise it might be too much for some) but just making it a tougher option.

“Even if it were just a little bit tougher to pick up your commemorative top you might see less people taking them. Most of them are basically just plastic bags in another form. It’s similar materials, but we don’t think twice about the waste it can cause,”

When you put these tops in the washing machine there are micro fibres that come loose and get into the water system. These micro fibres all end up in the ocean eventually,” says the ultra runner. “That’s without thinking of the pollution caused by the manufacturing and shipping process of the kit.”

Zero-Waste runners

Some events, such as Basingstoke Half, give runners the option to be a ‘zero waste runner’ and not take home a tee, a medal or any of the other items potentially unnecessary to the athlete. In turn the race offers a discount in price too so everybody wins. How many people would take up this offer in more races?

What races can do to help the environment is a whole other article in itself, but first we can all focus on what we can do as individuals. If we start asking or demanding different standards from our races then we will have a positive impact.

Ultimately the answer is for us to all consume less in our lives in general. How many items of clothing in your wardrobe haven’t been worn at all in the last 12 months? Do you need that new pair of shorts or trainers. Could you make a difference.

ReRun Clothing

The aim of ReRun is to get the running community thinking. Could you purchase “pre-loved” clothing instead of new kit?

“By extending the lifetime of our clothing by two or three months we see a 5-10% reduction in the carbon, water and waste footprints of that item,” remarked Jalley, “extending the life by 9 months would result in a 20 to 30 % reduction.”

And extending the lifetime is one thing ReRun do, by up-cycling unwanted kit into something beautiful that will live on longer. Their running vests, constructed of multiple unwanted pieces of kit, are stylish and functional. Lawson himself is running in entirely second hand or up cycled kit going froward. He is committed to the message they want to send out.

If an elite international ultra runner can run all his events in second hand kit then what is your excuse?

Dan and Charlotte getting into my head

It is working too. As I’m fortunate to consider Dan and Charlotte good friends we’ve spoken about their mission on a few occasions. Now I have their voices in my head every time I look at new kit. I’m asking myself if I really need it, stopping myself collecting race t-shirts that I won’t use and being more aware in general.

I’m not perfect, I have purchased new shoes recently. But I am making an attempt to batter the ones I do have before I pass them on. A lot of my kit ends up with friends or family, rather than dumped or thrown out but even that means I’ve got too much in the first place.

Becoming part of the problem?

Even this early into the project ReRun are finding themselves encouraging commercialism. “We have one runner who’s purchasing a lot on our website. It’s great that they’re really buying into the idea and, hopefully, not buying loads of kit elsewhere too. But we also want to ask if they really need all the ReRun kit they’re buying too!”

The demand for ReRun custom up cycled kit and pre-loved items is going really well. If you look on the website you’re certainly going to find a gem or too for your next race, but before you buy anything, ask yourself “Do you really need that t-shirt?”

Ultimately ReRun is about extending the life of the products we do use and maybe finding a new purpose for them after they had been worn out. Companies thinking about sustainable materials is great, but are they thinking about where their product will end up and trying to avoid those ocean plastics ending up back in the ocean or a landfill?

What can we do?

On the website there is even advice on what we can do as runners:

*Donate any unwanted clothes or equipment to ReRun
*Organise a collection of unwanted running gear or equipment for us at your local club.
*Donate your unwanted clothes or equipment to another project or runners you know.
*Sell on your own unwanted clothes or equipment to prolong the life of it.
*Smile and tell everyone how wonderful they are.
*Encourage everyone else you know to do one of the above

The other thing that will make a difference is to turn down that race t-shirt and make sure the race organiser knows why. The more runners that voice this opinion, the more events will start to think.

If you want to find out more then visit the Rerun Website or follow them on Instagram for good times and knowledge, all in one account.

Are you a fan of Fast Running? Then please support us and become a patreon. For as little as the price of a monthly magazine you can support Fast Running – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

The post Do you really need that race t-shirt? appeared first on Fast Running.

UPDATE: Dan Lawson stopped on the eighth morning of his JOGLE record attempt. The athlete as already joked  “Anyone fancy LEJOG 2019?”

Dan Lawson has called day seven to an early close when it became clear that the nine days and two hour was not going to be achievable. The 24hr runner had been on schedule at the end of day six but the morning’s running was not good.

With several problems causing the inspirational runner to move slower and slower, the decision was made to introduce more sleep during the day to help keep progress moving forward.

Crew member Mick Seymour felt that “Dan was still eating and drinking really well, but the lack of sleep over the past week was catching up”. The experienced British 24hr crew member has seen Lawson in tough times in the past, but this was a new level.

Run, sleep, eat, repeat

With experienced JOGLE former record holder Richard Brown now joining the support staff the plan was changed. Now it was four to six hours of running, followed by a 45-minute nap.

The aim of a 45 min sleep is to avoid getting into deeper R.E.M. sleep patterns, but optimise rest. Past 45 minutes it takes 90 minutes to go through a full cycle and waking the athlete up during this can have a detrimental effect.

The route was changed to find flatter running and easier support positions for the crew but the pace kept slowing.

Lawson was joined by fellow British 24hr squad members Paddy Robbins and Nathan Montague. More great people form the community joining forces with their peer to attempt something truly amazing.

The extra sleeping stops were not keeping the record attempt on course and very quickly the nine day, two hour finish could be seen slipping away.

Tough decisions

After several discussions within the team and supporters elsewhere it was decided that the record wasn’t achievable. Lawson’s health was also a concern, as well as simply his enjoyment of running. For someone who loves their sport so much, pushing too hard can risk that love.

Despite the monumental efforts of wife Charlotte Jalley and crew members Mick Seymour and Richard Brown, the run was stopped for the day on the A38 before Axbridge.

The show must go on

The plan is now to have a full night’s sleep and aim to complete the run under ten days. This would still be the second fastest JOGLE of all time, with Richard Brown’s 10 day and two-hour record. Still a huge task, but an extra day might help Lawson achieve this goal.

A tired, but content Lawson today said “the people coming out to support have been wonderful. It’s been beautiful to see so many of the running community just come out and support me. I’m so thankful.

“Even now three guys are waiting in the car park in case I want to get going again. It means so much to me that people would take the time to come and help me on this adventure.”

In some way you could hear the relief in Lawson’s voice, the happy runner could run for fun again tomorrow. The growing pressure of the record was carried heavy on his shoulders.

Join the party

“It’s been great to run with so many people. I think one day we had about 20-25 different people join us. In Scotland, children were staying up late just to hand me sweets as I ran past,” recalled the athlete. “If people want to come join me in the next couple of days I will be running to Land’s End.”

So whilst there is still time, take the chance to join Dan. You can still check on Open Tracking where the runner is, but let’s allow some space to get things moving on Tuesday morning first.

The plan may have changed but the people at www.sportsinjuryfix.com were still helping each day to find physios to help the JOGLE adventure. If you need to find a sports specialist in your local area then Dan can highly recommend them.

A personal note

As a 24hr runner and friend of Dan. it has been a joy following his progress this week. His attempt on the record has been nothing short of extraordinary. Every effort has been given to see if this was possible.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who has been inspired by Dan’s running. As well as Dan, his crew of Charlotte and Mick have also been brilliant and I know they have worked their socks off to help make Dan’s dream a reality.

Fast Running will still follow Dan to the end of the road, but even after the adventure ends this time, it does not feel like the end of the journey.

RELATED: Dan Lawson 450 miles into JOGLE record attempt

Are you a fan of Fast Running? Then please support us and become a patreon. For as little as the price of a monthly magazine you can support Fast Running – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

The post JOGLE record no longer possible, Lawson tries to continue appeared first on Fast Running.