Ellis Bland – Hadrian’s Wall FKT

Ellis Bland sets a new FKT during his most recent challenge along Hadrian’s Wall! Catching up with Ultrarunner Magazine, Ellis tells of the journey to the record and the trials and tribulations he faced along the way!

Why Hadrian’s Wall? …

Hadrian’s wall was an obscure route to choose when I consider that I had spent the entirety of lockdown training on the fells for my double Bob Graham Round attempt back in June. I had put so much of myself into the build-up of that challenge. The goal was to run further than I had ever run before and I truly committed to the plan, even gained three-quarters of a stone to do it, but the attempt was unsuccessful for reasons outside of my control, as a result, I took some time away from the sport altogether.

“After the unsuccessful double Bob Graham, I took some time out to get my thoughts together. I am an out and out racer, it’s what I love to do, and it was super important to me and my coach Rowan Wood that I got myself back into racing. I had read quite bit online about people coming back to the race scene post lockdown and not being race fit, which filled me with some anxiety”.

During August, just under two months after the double Bob Graham attempt, I did go down to Cornwall and take part in a 100-kilometre race on the coastal path, but I did not feel ‘properly’ race-ready.

“I began to look around for something that was 100-miles or less, with limited climb, something to get my legs turning over. That is when Hadrian’s wall just presented itself to me as an epic, low pressure running challenge, to take on and get my legs moving”.

Jacob Snochowski set the route record (fastest known time) with a remarkable time of 16 hours and 25 minutes! Jake took on the wall self-supported and while I completely respect what he did there, I wasn’t going to do it that way.  I was going to take a support crew with me. If nothing went wrong along the way, in terms of an injury, I just needed to beat that time, and I felt that was totally achievable! The question was, how much time could I take off it?