#upandrun 2019
This time last week I was well underway from the middle of nowhere south east of Oxford on my way to the middle of nowhere near Swindon. It was Race To The Stones (RTTS) and the final of the planned ultra runs for #upandrun. As my old friend and now UP Ambassador Chris Peskett pointed out, it was also the first that I ran ‘seriously’.
It can take a while to get to ‘serious’. And that’s my experience, as of course others will get stuck in seriously from the outset. There were a good few runners who took on the ultra for the first time and posted impressive times. Hats off.
It began in May with the Isle of Wight Challenge 106k that I ran over two days. Having got rather excited and then hit the lows afterwards, I quickly booked up London to Brighton. This time it was 100k in one go. These were my preparation for RTTS. After London to Brighton I decided to do a solo and ran from home to Hampton Court, before following the Thames Path to the Thames Barrier. That was 62k. Finally, RTTS last Saturday, coming home just before 10pm and soon having a beer….
What’s next?
It’s an exciting time as UP now has two Ambassadors running to raise awareness of our work and plans for the future. Much is going on behind the scenes.
I am truly grateful that I have been able to incorporate the passion for running with my purpose. The running community is wide and global so I hope to build the UP story within this world as a means to reach beyond to all corners of society, helping those most in need: the people suffering.
The runs are a firm fixture. I will be planning the next organised races but also doing a number of solos. As ever the hashtag #upandrun will be the one to follow. The kit is coming together with #upandrun T-shirts and trucker hats for casual wear together with the running attire. We continue to seek sponsors, which would be running brands and businesses that share the vision and the purpose to improve the world by reducing suffering — do get in touch if you want to discuss sponsorship.
The next UP workshop is on August 7th at The Groves Medical Centre — go to this page for the link. Of course this benefits local people and those who can get there, but soon enough the material will be accessible for all via the website.
Please share and help us build. This is about a better society for all, and its only together that we can do this, and we can!
On we go.
RS
understand pain 