Have you noticed everyone’s cycling across Europe lately, or running over the Alps, or skiing to the south pole? Where once just a few mad explorers pushed themselves to these limits, now amateur sport is turning into a feat of ultra-endurance, from 4,000km bike rides to 100 mile runs. But … why?
“There are specific aspects to physical challenges like this,” says Dr Carla Meijen, a sport and exercise psychologist and assistant professor at the University of Amsterdam. “They offer a mix of endorphins, feeling fitter and observing progress”.
She says the increased accessibility of these events is one of the reasons they’re becoming more popular. For some, succeeding at something so extreme feels like an elite club for non-elite athletes. “People are reading about them and seeing posts onsocial media, so there is a greater pool of knowledge. They see others like them taking part and want to give it a try, to bepart of theculture.”
More help is now available too: coaching, sport psychology support and nutrition advice, via clubs and online. As people hone their skills (such as knowing when to sleep, or avoiding injuries) and develop mind tricks, from reworking negative thoughts to smiling (it really canhelp), they developthe resilient mindset that enables them tokeep going.
The idea is to push though all the pain, a goal that can be mystifying to some. As Meijen says, ‘There’s plenty of research to do into why people voluntarily put themselves through pain in pursuitof sport.”
Robbie Britton, the British record holder for 24-hour running (172 miles), is all too familiar with pain and thinks it is all part of the fun: “Part of me looks forward to the tougher sections of a race. Anyone can run well when they’re feeling good, but a successful ultra-distance athlete keeps going when everything hurts.”
He also believes anyone can take part – should they want to. “Ultra-running may be portrayed as superhuman, and it does take huge commitment, but it’s not unattainable.”
It is not always about being the first over the finish line. Suffering together through these races has an unexpected bonding effect. Often the satisfaction lies in defeating the course rather thanbeating one another.
Meijen says: “While there is competitiveness at the sharp end of ultra-distance racing, research tends to indicate that people are often not particularly motivated by their finishing positions; they’re driven more by personal accomplishment.”
Feel an urge to take your daily run, swim or cycleto thenext level? Try one of these five ultra-distance events.
Ultra-running
Long-distance running events – longer than a marathon’s 26.2 miles – take place in mountains, deserts and jungles. The iconic mountain event is UTMB (Ultra Trail Mont Blanc), which now comprises 42 races a year, on five continents, with 50km, 100km and sometimes 100-mile (160km) routes, all non-stop with considerable elevation. Even more testing is the Tor des Géants, a 205-mile circuit around Courmayeur in the Italian Alps.
The Marathon des Sables, held in Morocco each April, has a higher adventure quotient. Runners carry food, bedding and equipment (water and medical care are provided) and cover around 155 miles over six daily stages of 10-50 miles in singeing heat. It has spawned alternatives, including Racing the Planet (whose 4 Deserts series involves races of similar distances in the Gobi, Atacama, Namib and Jordan), and Global Limits (events of five shorter stages in São Tomé, Bhutan and Cambodia).
In Britain, January sees the non-stop Spine Race, 268 miles along the Pennine Way from Derbyshire tothe Scottish Borders, and September the Dragon’s Back, 236 miles and 17,000 metres of elevation along the mountainous backbone of Wales in six stages.
Where once the sport required just shorts and running shoes, now there are waistcoats (for water bottles and gels), watches, and specialist footwear such as trail shoes with better grip and tough soles. So what’s Britton’s top advice? “In training, it’s consistency. In racing, it’s self-control in the first third; eating and drinking in the middle; and giving everything you have in the final section.”
Ultra-cycling
Ultra-distance cycling is fast, non-stop, self-supported riding using navigation devices and streamlined “luggage” (bags hanging from top tubeand handlebars and a triangular “shark’s fin” bag protruding from your seat post).
Unlike pro-cycling, with its teams of physios and support cars, ultra-cyclists can use only publicly available services – cafes, supermarkets, bike shops. They spend as much time as possible in the saddle, dozing near the road for a few hours at night, but sleeping ina hotel every third or fourth evening to wash kit and recharge.
As suggested by the name of the original event, the Transcontinental Race, events tend to cross borders. The 45-SouthWest covers 2,700 miles, from Krakow to Tarifa, and NorthCape 4000 about 2,500 miles, from the Alps to Europe’s northern tip. Closer to home are the Pan Celtic Race (1,000-plus miles through the Celtic nations, including Brittany and the Isle of Man) and Ireland’s 1,400-mile TransAtlanticWay.
Jasmijn Muller runs a coaching business with a particular focus on female riders. Besides a physical programme, she teaches people to develop a mental toolbox. She encourages cyclists to “chunk” (sub-divide distances), and shift their attention from discomfort, for example by counting road signs or thinking about resupply stops. She also advises on everything from power-napping to avoiding nausea (ginger tea and sweets can help).
Long-distance swimming
Of the hundreds of events and challenges worldwide, the cross-Channel swim – 21-plus miles from England to France across busy shipping lanes – remains the benchmark. Training takes up to two years, sometimes via 10km events (swimming’s marathon equivalent).
Elsewhere, the Lake Geneva Swimming Association arranges crossings from Lausanne to Evian (eight miles) and back, as well as a 44-mile full lake swim. The Catalina Channel is a 20.2-mile swim from Santa Catalina island, off California, to the mainland ; the 20 Bridges Swim is a 28.5 mile circumnavigation of Manhattan island; and the North Channel is a 21.4-mile swim from Northern Ireland to Scotland.
Cold water (below 15C) is an additional challenge, such as a Loch Ness swim (22.5 miles). Ice Mile swims take place anywhere with water at 5C or less.
Swimming in open water can mean seasickness, nerves, jellyfish stings, disorientation, problems with swallowing sea water, cramping when treading water to eat and drink, and hypothermia.
“I make sure swimmers have encountered all of these issues before their big swim so they know how to deal with them,” says Dr Nick Murch, an acute medicine consultant, who has swum the Channel, the North Channel and the length of Lake Geneva.
His advice? “Training the mind is key: visualise success, in words and pictures; chunk the time into one-hour swims culminating in a feed break; and “ground” positive thoughts with an action (I kiss my bicep), which you can repeat to reset yourself.”
Adventure racing
Dramatic, remote backdrops are essential to this extreme sport, which consists of four- or five-day races in kayaks, on foot, horseback or mountain bike. Teams of three or four are usually mixed-sex, and they carry food, water and equipment for distances of up to 300 miles. Non-stop races become demanding after two nights, when the “sleep-monster” bludgeons you into micro-naps.
The races often involve rope work, caving or whitewater paddling. Navigation skills (with map and compass) are key. Tensions can flare: teammates have been known never to talk to one another again.
Leading events are in the Adventure Racing World Series. Adventure Race Croatia in May will see30 mixed teams paddle, hike and pedal around the Kvarner district; and Raid in France will cover about 250 miles over six days in south-west France in June. Britain has Itera, which in 2024 has a “lite” (48-hour) event for newcomers (pairs and teams offour) with kayaking, biking and hiking in north Wales in July.
Ski mountaineering
Essentially skiing uphill as well as down, usually off-piste, these events require exceptional fitness for the ascents, and skill on the descents. Switzerland’s Patrouille des Glaciers covers about 36 miles along the Haute Route from Zermatt to Verbier. Starting at dawn, teams of three climb to more than 3,600 metres before descending into the resort of Arolla and climbing over to Verbier.
The harshest environment of all is the Antarctic, which an increasing number of group and solo expeditions have visited in recent years. It requires winter survival skills – mistakes can lead to frostbite or even death. Physical training involves dragging tyres to imitate the weight of the “pulk”, the sled that carries your equipment and food. Most people travel in teams.
Psychologist Paula Reid teaches “adventure psychology” to groups on races and expeditions. She skied to the south pole in a team of five in 2012-13.
“We recommend that team members define in advance what success looks like and are clear about their goals. A ‘mission’ may be simple, but a collective vision, such as everyone celebrating together at the south pole, can work as glue for the team in what may turn out to be difficult and even dangerous circ*mstances,” she says.
There is no standard route in Antarctica as teams can be flown to any point: they might complete, for example, the “last degree” (from 89 degrees south to the pole), or a route from a historic hut or a coastal point to the pole.
James Henderson is writing a book about endurance for Aurum Press
