On June 24th 2023, David Watkins and I ran 107 kilometres around Victoria Park to raise awareness for the 107 people who take their own lives every week in England and Wales. Below are some reflections in which I have answered a few common questions about the project and considered what’s next. Header photo by David Watkins.
Why 107 kilometres?
The most common question Dave and I encountered in the lead-up to our run was, “Why are you running 107 kilometres?” The question often had two meanings.
Firstly, it was asked with bewilderment. Why would someone want to run around East London’s Victoria Park 26.5 times? Secondly, people questioned why 107 kilometres. The distance is not a widely recognised race distance, nor does it appeal to the desire to run a distance that is a multiple of ten.
It was on this second question that Dave and I were able to have the most fruitful and enlightening conversations. Explaining that the run symbolised the fact that every week, according to 2019 data, 107 people take their own lives in England and Wales was just as much of a shock to us as to those we spoke with.
But for the support networks and charities that deal with mental health crises every day, this figure is no surprise.
“One of the challenges is finding enough volunteers for our services,” explains an employee at the charity Shout, a 24/7 text support service for anyone struggling to cope.
It was on this basis that Dave and I decided to both raise money for Shout and also raise awareness about these suicide rates.
What sparked the idea for the run?
I had the idea about two years before the run. Mental health and suicide prevention are two things close to my heart, and I felt an urge to do something about them. To marry that urge with running, something that has greatly helped me and others through the highs and lows of life, just made sense.
Therefore, the idea to symbolise the scale of the UK’s mental health crisis through an ultra-marathon was born.
But it was partnering with Dave that gave me the impetus to grow the idea into a fundraising project, resulting in brand partnerships and raising thousands of pounds for Shout. I often think that if we hadn’t thankfully bumped into each other at our local run club, Your Friendly Runners, the idea would have stayed an idea.
We also decided to undertake the run only around Victoria Park, in order to make it more mentally challenging and so as many people as possible could get involved. There is also something to be said about running the 107 kilometres on paths well-trodden by people running, exercising and playing, often trying to find some sense of inner peace.
How did you prepare for the physical and mental challenge of running 107 kilometres?
Other than doing a few extra-long runs, my week-to-week training did not change dramatically, having run the 100-kilometre distance a handful of times before. People often suggested I should run multiple laps of Victoria Park to prepare for the monotony of the challenge. But having lived near the park for nearly seven years, I was already bored of its paved outer track, something that an extra 26.5 laps would not change much.
One way I prepared for the event, in a new way, was by thinking about nutrition. The nutritionist, Georgie Murphy, kindly offered to help Dave and me learn about how we should fuel our training to ensure the best performance. This certainly paid off, and on the day of the event, despite humid conditions, I felt well-fueled throughout.
All of this preparation was made easier by Your Friendly Runners and the running apparel company, Soar Running, who continually supported us with the training and events in the lead-up.
Did you encounter any unexpected difficulties or setbacks?
There were two major challenges that stood out, one mental and the other physical.
Unexpectedly, the day before the run, I was overcome with anxiety. My primal instincts were asking me the age-old question of fight or flight. “You are not capable of doing this,” “You are going to let people down,” and “What if no one cares?” were just a few of the fearful thoughts rattling around my brain in the hours before the run.
Thankfully, when I set off on the run, such fears and anxieties slowly dripped away.
The other challenge came at 85 kilometres, roughly nine hours into the run, when my toenail decided to detach from my big toe due to a blister that had been slowly forming throughout the day. Having not experienced major blisters on big runs before, I was surprised by this occurrence.
I briefly stopped and tried to patch myself up, but the damage was done. When I tried to run, the pain was unbelievable, and I realised that my run had come to an end. After coming to terms with this, I got on a bike next to Dave as he amazingly continued for the next 20 kilometres. We hobbled the final 2 kilometres together.
What’s next?
Neither of us are under the illusion that running around a park all day will solve the mental health crisis in the UK. But we do hope to have made a small contribution to the services that help those in crisis and raised awareness of the scale of the mental health challenge faced in the UK.
Because of this, we are motivated to continue this project, especially as suicide rates are not falling. The Office for National Statistics showed that in 2022, there were 5,642 suicides. This equates to over 108 individuals tragically taking their lives each week, an increase from the 2019 figures.
As such, Dave and I will relaunch the project this year with the hope of raising more money and raising more awareness.
