Ultimate tough-run returns to stadium (From Barry And District News)

Ultimate tough-run returns to stadium

Ultra-distance running returns to Barry on March 6, with the 19th annual Barry 40 Miles Track Race being staged at the Jenner Park track.

While this event is unusual, both in its arduous distance and its repetitive format - the runners complete 161 laps of the 400 metres synthetic surface - over the last two decades the race has acquired a certain'cult' status all of its own.

And for endurance runners the Jenner Park event is very much one to put on their athletic CV, such is its reputation.

It is an event for all shapes and sizes of runners, fast and slow, young and old.

It is very much a personal challenge, while for some it is a race against the clock, or against the opposition, for most it is mainly about finishing.

Runners who only meet each other on the start line become firm friends in the shared crusade against the distance, long before the 40 miles is complete.

And helping them achieve these goals is an army of helpers, lap scorers, feed attendants or simply moral supporters. The strength of the mind supersedes the strength of the body.

Comparison of the youngest and oldest competitors gives a flavour.

Youngest of the 33 entrants is Lizzy Hawker from Southampton.

She is 28 and is a PhD student in polar oceanography having done six research cruises in the Antarctic with the British Antarctic Society.

She loves the hills, having completed three Snowdon Marathons, three Welsh 1,000 metres, the Bob Graham Round and the Roman Run.

She's also done mountaineering in the Alps, Cascades and Vancouver Island and ski mountaineering in the Alps, Indian Himalayas and British Columbia.

At the other end of the age spectrum is Geoff Oliver, who is 71 and a regular visitor to Barry.

Last year he competed over a wide range of distances. He won Gold Medals in the M70 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres British track championships in Birmingham in June.

He was the first over-60 in the London-Brighton 55 miles, fourth overall in the British 24-hour championships with 113 miles, but most impressive of all, he was first over 60 in the World 100kms Championships in Winschoten, Holland.

It has been said that the only predictable feature of ultra-running is its unpredictability - it's that tough an event!

While speculating a likely outcome is a hazardous business, overall race favourite may be Stuart Buchan from Kingston-upon Hull.

He is 44 and placed fourth here last year. He went on to run a PB two hours 38 minutes in the London Marathon.

His toughest challenge may come from Andy Farquharson, of Kent AC.

Originally from Scotland, Andy's only previous run here was ten years ago when he came seventh. He does, however, have a marathon best of 2:31.

Best local hope appears to be Andy Cleves, who placed sixth last year and goes in search of his third Welsh Championship, which is incorporated within the event.

Of five lady entries, the favourite would seem to be Vicky Skelton from North Devon. Vicky has entered Barry for each of the last two years, only to be sidelined through injury.

However, a superb outright win in last October's London-Brighton Road Race showed that she is back to her best.

Nearest challenge may come from Sharon Gayter, from New Marske Harriers. Sharon last ran here in 1994, her first year of ultra-distance.

Since then, she has been ranked number one woman in the UK over 24 hours for eight consecutive seasons, and in 2003 was one of five athletes who completed the 1,000-mile challenge, that was incorporated within the London Marathon build-up.

This replicated and celebrated the outstanding feat of Captain Robert Barclay, who covered one mile in each of 1,000 consecutive hours in 1809 for a huge wager.

This entails an enormous task of both physical endurance and sleep deprivation.

On the local front Fiona Davies, ultra debutant from Bridgend, may be a dark horse.

* As per tradition, start time is 10am and stadium entry is free. Come and give some moral support to some incredibly tough and dedicated athletes. Just being there can be a humbling yet uplifting experience.