I had planned to run the Speyside Way 100km in August, however I sustained an injury late in my training. This meant 3 weeks of no running at all and having to withdraw from the race. Absolutely rubbish.

I have now largely recovered from that and am desperate to complete this challenge before the year's out! With expert guidance (thank you Sam Morton!) I have been increasing my training again, and I am going to attempt to run the Ultra Scotland 50 miles (actually 56 miles) instead.

This race follows a section of the Southern Upland Way. It is 9.3km shorter than the Speyside Way, however the ascent profile totals 3384m!... that is an additional 2138m = 2 1/3 Munro's!

So if you've sponsored me already - thank you very much! - and I hope that you will accept the significant increase in ascent as an acceptable replacement for the minimal decrease in distance!

If you've not done so already, please consider a sponsorship of any size! It's all for a great cause that's very important to me - details below...

Thank you!

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Running is my happy place, but this is going to be really tough!

Similarly, living with mental health difficulties as a young person is really tough. The stigma, the expectations, the consequences: even with a formidable support network it’s a lonely and confusing place to be.

Although it’s gaining traction, mental health in the NHS is still very much underfunded and desperately lacking in resources. Specifically, young people are not receiving the early, constructive interventions that can be the difference between wanting to use your life rather than lose your life.

Young Minds is a UK charity which: 

• offers a wealth of resources - for young people and parents - on: specific conditions; medication and treatments; and understanding how you're feeling and ways to look after yourself ... to name just a few
• provides a breadth of training for teachers and schools
• is involved in projects which: face racism; address mental health in refugees & asylum seekers; and use evidence-based approaches to promote resilience

In addition, Young Minds is building a network of Early Support Hubs for young people up to 25 years old. These offer free, drop-in support [on a self-referral basis] that is flexible and easily accessible. They provide advice and information on work & employment, sexual health and mental health. Similar programmes already exist in Denmark, Australia and Ireland, and Young Minds is hoping to replicate their success.

So I am going to run [/walk/crawl!] all 90.7km of the Southern Upland Way with the knowledge that things can be ok, and with the hope that you will support Young Minds to help others realise that it can be too.

More Information:

https://www.gbultras.com/ultra-scotland-50/