The 428-mile route features over 15,000m of elevation and takes you from coast to coast across the trails of rural Scotland. Woody was diagnosed with autism just last year, and his son and daughter are also on the spectrum, and so came the motivation to raise awareness of a great cause.
The idea for the out-and-back started as more of a passive question during a conversation, but it quickly piqued Woody’s interest after spending some time on the route for the GB Ultras Race Across Scotland earlier in the year. He crunched the numbers to see how long it might take, the conclusion being that it could be done in 7 days, and so the training began.
He went back to the drawing board on certain aspects of his training programme, with the main area for improvement being nutrition. Participation in several ultras leading up to the planned start date allowed him to review and develop a new diet plan while continuing to get in shape and gather the right support crew.
Woody set off on April 6th and settled into the diverse terrains of the Southern Upland Way. Just as diverse as the route though, was the weather. On the first half of the run he was able to enjoy the expansive views and sublime trails, then on day one of the way back was hit with horrendous rain and minimal visibility, to the point of not being able to find certain parts of the route. The key to dealing with these situations wasn’t just preparing for the worst during the planning, but embracing the trial in the moment.
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