South Coast Challenge 2019: Retro Race Report

“It’s just another 13km…”

I’d been telling myself this since arriving in Eastbourne, “It’s just another 13km…after the marathon.” As if running 13km is any sort of small feat in it’s own right (it’s not.) I suppose I was hoping that the repetitive diminishing of those 13 kilometres beyond the familiar 42 would make the challenge of my first ultramarathon a much less daunting task.

The challenge in question was the 2019 South Coast Challenge hosted by Action Challenge. The full version of the event offered a 100km run from Eastbourne, along the coast, to Arundel - however runners could also opt to run the first or second ‘half’, 55km and 45km respectively, with the finish / start area between the two legs being Hove Park. I did briefly entertain the notion of just signing up for the full 100km and seeing how far I'd get, but common sense soon set in and I opted for the 55km of the first half.

31 August, 08:40

After a short bus ride from Eastbourne train station, surrounded by cloaked comparisons between individual race preparations and the smell of Deep Heat, we arrived at the starting area just before our allotted set off time. There was just enough time for some final preparations before the horn went off and the stampede set off from the dewy playing fields, out through the outskirts of Eastbourne, and into the hills.

The Seven Sisters

Ascending above the city, we were greeted by the spectacular views of the Seven Sisters, and as we ran along the white chalk cliffside that meandered all the way to the horizon, it was easy to forget the vast scale of the task as hand. After passing the Belle Tout Lighthouse, we reached the first aid station on the 11km mark at Birling Gap - where runners could refill supplies of water and sweets and, if necessary, have a sit down. I wasn’t trying to set any records or even run a certain time - but I was also enjoying myself and determined not to spend any longer in the aids stations that I had to. I refilled my water bottles and pressed on.

Had I known what was to come, I may have reconsidered my aid station haste. The journey from the first aid station to the second would be the most physically demanding for me. Where the first section and the third and fourth to come had predominantly one main summit to climb and descend - Section Two was a leg burning rollercoaster of hard breathing hikes, followed by downhill sections that weren't long enough for the amount of recovery running in the noon sun requires.

During my time in the aforementioned leg furnace, the scale of the challenge had really hit home and I felt like the marathon section may be impossible let alone the additional 13km I was attempting to undermine. Luckily, I caught up to a couple of runners just ahead of me who were similarly suffering and we were each glad of the company and encouragement the other had to offer. Our greatest source of motivation was yet to come though. As the course markings led us to a field we were to enter and cross - we each stood for a minute a contemplated just what would happen if we met the 'Bull in Field" that the attached signs spoke of... Having spotted His Horned Lordship further down the field, we wasted no time in passing through his quarters and on to the halfway aid station.

I have known pure motivation…

I allowed myself a brief internal celebration at making it to the halfway point before restocking on water and setting off into Section Three. By that point, the pain and fatigue was beginning to build up in my legs, so I was weary of spending too long in the aid station while I had any sort of momentum (our run in with the bull had given me something of an adrenaline rush and I was keen to make the most of it.) During the ascents, I was having to set mini goals for myself in an attempt to quiet the voice in my head that only wanted to talk about how f*****g steep the climb was - Could I reach that next gate? Or the tree beyond the next one before stopping? The games were going well until I set my sights on a cow who, obviously not being a fan, kept moving away as I approached. Eventually I had to admit defeat an opt for another big oak tree.

As obvious as this may initially sound, I came to realise that I am much faster at running downhill that running up. The internal anxiety I would feel as I watched runners seemingly glide up the inclines soon disappeared as soon as we would summit and I would then reel them all back in again and fly past. Such a discovery was a great moral boost as the ground levelled out and I shuffled in to what was the final aid station between the finish and I.

The temptation to surrender to the seating area was now almost irresistible, as I watched many of my fellow competitors unburden themselves of their race vests and relieve their feet of duty. Even as that hill hating voice in my head bargained the permission of even 10 seconds rest, I resisted and kept moving towards the start of the final section. Once you start a race section, you can't return to the aid station... thankfully.

This was it, the final stretch to the finish. As we reached the summit of what was the final sizeable climb of the course, I watched the distance on the watch slowly creep up to and over 42km, marathon distance.

"It's just another 13km..."

Descending from the hills and into the outskirts of Brighton, I settled into another game of 'Can we run to that thing' and revelled at my new 'Ultra Runner' status. The pain and fatigue in my legs was becoming even more apparent with the transition from trails back to footpaths and roads. We reached 50km mark as we shuffled along of the ever-bustling Brighton Pier, crowded with sellers, weekend away-ers and people pondering the strangely dressed, exhausted runners who were slowly shuffling their way along the promenade. Just as it felt like the pier continued on for eternity, the bright pink arrows that had led us this far commanded a right turn of the sea front and along the final couple of kilometers to Hove Park.

I crossed the finish line to fanfare of the gathered crowd and was awarded with my medal, a meal token and a glass of champagne. After finally allowing myself to collapse into the nearest chair, I knocked back my bubbly and simply sat for a minute reflecting on how I'd spent the last 7 hours 22 minutes.

That’s all the amount it took…

So to all the marathon runners out there thinking of venturing to the further distances beyond, I give you my main takeaways...

Takeaway, the First - Be sensible about it. If you're anything like me, you'll be able to accept that although you can run a marathon, 100km as a first ultra probably isn't the move.

Takeaway, the Second - Patience is key. It took me quite a lot of time to get used to not running all of the race as you would in a marathon. It's okay to hike up those hills when you know you're gonna need that energy in the later stages.

Takeaway, the Third - You can. You absolutely can. Yes, the extra distance can be daunting, but if you can break it down and manage the challenge in sections then you can and will get there.

My thanks to the folks at Action Challenge for hosting what was a well organised and straightforward event - even though you did scare the s**t out of me with that bull...