This July, our very own Wendy Lawson will be taking part in the UK’s biggest ultramarathon along the country’s oldest path towards the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Avebury stone circle. The two-day event, which will take place on 8-9 July, is a true test of endurance and will see Wendy running and walking a total of 100k.

Wendy said: “Like any other ultramarathon, it will be a mixture of running and walking and is a huge commitment – the training takes priority, juggling everything else around it (including a hen night, which was due to take place the same weekend). However, I believe I have the mental headspace to complete the training and the event.

“I’m very excited and very nervous to say the least as you just don’t know what is going to happen on the day. My race is going to be one of enjoyment, taking photographs and chatting with other participants as I run and walk the trail. I’m not going to overthink the days as I know I won’t be doing another ultra. I just want to run, walk, enjoy the event, take photos and smile.”

As well as supporting Wendy, we’ll be raising money for our office hub charity, Autism East Midlands. Autism is a complex, life-long and invisible condition that affects how a person sees and understands the world, and how they communicate and interact socially. Despite it being a common condition, autism remains very difficult to achieve a diagnosis and access support. Autism East Midlands provides a wide-range of high-quality care and education services to meet the needs of those with autism.

Background:

Wendy started running in 2007 having watched a man run a 5k across the Sahara desert saltpan in 45-degree heat. She started at Redhill Road Runners that same year and could barely run at all, with individual members taking her out on a run twice weekly to improve her fitness.

Fast forward to 2014, Wendy won a club place for the London Marathon 2015. However, after falling and breaking her wrist while training, she postponed her place and completed the marathon in 2016. Wendy has also encouraged Redhill Road Runners to run a Couch to 5k programme for beginners and she gained her UKA Run Leader Licence to run this programme each year.

Last year, Wendy decided she would undertake an ultramarathon in order to complete a virtual set of races. She entered both the ballot for Race to the Stones Ultra and London Marathon 2023 and was awarded both.

As her main race in 2023 is Race to the Stones, the London Marathon became a training run. Most of her other training runs have been solo, getting up at around 5am to eat enough to get through the first half of the run that day, getting water bottles packed and generally going over the mental check list of the route, before setting off to run at 6am, usually in the dark, with a head torch.