Ben and Fletch talk though the final preparations with just one week to go until Badwater 135. Heat training and listener questions. We talk tapering for events, mistakes people make and how this race is a little different. Both of us are excited or is it nerves, we discuss.

Fletch and Ben talk through the training block and overall plan as we look to sharpen everything up in the last few weeks before Badwater 135. They discuss the preparation and plans that are being put in place now so that come race day the focus can be on one thing - relentless forward progress.

In this weeks call Ben and Fletch chat through the weekend's training - an 80km run and dress rehearsal for the crew. Not only a great time to get everyone together, but a really insightful training session.

In this episode, Ben and Fletch discuss what 10 days in the heat chamber looks like. We talk about how quickly the improvements come and start to dial into the specifics of Badwater 135.

It’s no surprise that heat acclimation is required for Badwater. It’s probably the most frequent question I get asked in fact. So what does heat training look like? How do you do it in the UK?

In this episode, Ben and Fletch discuss this weekend’s upcoming Backyard Ultra (what even is that?) and we begin the rather large topic of sweat. A bit of an internet glitch led to a rather abrupt end - apologies.

This weekend I’m taking part in my first backyard ultra - for those that don’t know, it’s not me just running around my garden. It’s a race format where you have to “run or walk a precise loop of 4.167 miles (6.706 km) every hour, on the hour”. It’s not as random as it sounds, 24 yards in 24 hours equals exactly 100 miles - well I suppose it’s still quite random.

Well, I must say it’s quite nice to be sitting down - it’s been a solid week of training and I’m looking forward to a rest day.

Sunday night checking in with Fletch “Evening, all uploaded. Big week this week." - he wasn’t joking.

In this episode, Ben and Fletch discuss marathon training, fuelling strategies, recovery, and the impact of thyroid health on performance. They share insights from recent races, training adjustments, and scientific principles behind endurance performance.

It's been a bit strange. The normal tempo of training has been disrupted. Some good reasons and some bad - the high was a PB at the Stratford Marathon, the lows were injury niggles and the related mental challenge. Let's dive in, I'll try to provide some context and insight. We'll tackle the easier parts first.

My Mum was an orphan. She built a family - raised three of us, held us together, made something from almost nothing. My Dad came from a very modest background in a northern town.

This week felt like proper training. The big one was the 30 km session on Saturday, that went 10 + 5 + 5 + 5 + 5 - each split getting faster. You do not blag 135 miles in a desert. You build it, one session at a time.

The dust has settled on the news I received on Sunday 8th February - I’ve been invited to race in Badwater 135.

Racing Badwater 135 has been a dream for many years. It has been the overarching goal that all other athletic pursuits have fed into. It has defined so much of what I do and who I am - and now, after all those steps, I have been invited.

I wasn’t sure if waking up at 0100 to watch Netflix was a good idea, but it was Alex Honnold free solo climbing a skyscraper—this was not your normal binge. And my two younger kids wanted to watch as well. (I was a little unsure about that… if there’d been one slip.)

Photograph credit: Chong Kok-yew/Netflix

This website has been something of a journal;  an account of why I want to race the monster that is Badwater 135.  I’ve shared insights into my training. I’ve talked about the races I’ve done – as both a means to prepare, and also as qualifiers.   And now, the application is submitted.   I will find out my fate in February.   I will either race Badwater 135 in July, or I will apply again in 2027.

Well that was bloody brilliant. Just finished my Saturday session and felt compelled to scribe.

So here we are again, a few weeks have passed since crossing the finish line at Nove Colli Run (NCR) for the second time and it's time to reflect: what happened, what went well, what didn't and what's next.

A year ago today I woke slightly bleary-eyed, it was Monday morning and we’d had some friends round for lunch on the Sunday.