THAMES PATH 100

Having completed the South Downs 50 mile race in 2016, Grantham Running Club’s Chris Limmer chose to take on the ultimate challenge of attempting to complete the Thames Path 100 race over the May day bank holiday weekend. The race starts in Richmond on Thames in West London and meanders its way along the river all the way to Oxford, passing many famous landmarks such as Hampton Court and Windsor Castle in the process.

Chris before the start

The forecast in the build up was not too dissimilar to the challenging conditions faced by the green and black army of GRC at the Virgin Money London Marathon in late April and these rather summer like conditions would take their toll on Chris and a number of others during the 100 mile event. With a mandatory kit list including 1 litre of fluid, two light sources and some back up warm gear in case of emergencies, there was the further additional challenge of carrying several kilos of additional weight along the river.
At 10am, with the temperature already creeping towards 20 degrees, Chris and 313 other competitors headed out of Richmond and into the unknown.
Chris had done some long runs with walk breaks and these were going to be crucial if he and the other runners were going to succeed on a day where the temperature in the shade was expected to get into the mid 20s. After passing Hampton court (and many a bemused visitor who were seen quickly searching what on earth these runners were taking part in), Chris made it to the first check point in good spirits at 12 miles.
The shade in places had made conditions manageable but the hottest time of day was yet to come. Passing through Staines and then onto the second official check point at 22 miles things were going okay still. The well-stocked aid stations were giving the refreshment and necessary cooling to at least delay the effects of the sun. In the next 8 or so miles, Chris stuck to his run about 20 minutes and then walk for 10 and this got him passed Windsor and into the Dorney check point at just after half past 3. Over 5 and a half hours since the race started.
Just after this aid station, as Chris broke back into a jog/shuffle, a tree root caught him and sent him on a spectacular tumble. Thankfully, with no harm done, he resumed his forward progress and successfully navigated Maidenhead (where he had a slight diversion for a Solero and a big block of ice cubes that were being handed out) and made it to Cookham at 38 miles. In the marathon between the first check point and here Chris gained over 100 places and was still in good spirits despite the dull sense of fatigue which all runners know and recognise regardless of where the edge of their comfort zone lies.
Even though it was now early evening, the heat was starting to take its toll. Between Cookham and Hurley at 44 miles there was little shade. For Chris, mentally and physically, the fact it was still so warm made it really hard especially with over 6 hours on his feet. He was at least keeping up with other runners and the ebb and flow in positions was fairly constant as other competitors chose different points to walk and others whom had begun even more conservatively than Chris during the early afternoon began to get into their stride.
Coming out of the Hurley check point at 44 miles, something wasn’t right. The few attempts at running made his stomach suggest that the sausage rolls/nuts/fruits and other goodies were going to be brought up in the fields lining this section. The seven miles that followed into Henley were to be the final bit of effort from Chris but it was livened up somewhat by the support from random groups of people enjoying a BBQ as the sun set. The respite was temporary though and arriving in Henley 10 and half hours after the start he was broken and suffering the effects of the heat.
It was at this point he chose to retire. Reflecting on his experience less than 24 hours later, he had no doubt that it was the right decision to pull out. “Despite all of the fluids consumed since early afternoon my body was telling me that this was not enough. I know it must seem unusual for a runner to say he is satisfied with a DNF but given the conditions I am glad I didn’t put my body so far into the red it got dangerous. I could have rested for an hour or so but there was no guarantee this would have helped with the effects of so long running in such heat. The support from friends and members of the running club was as amazing as ever. I do think that at some point in the future I will have to go back and complete the remaining sections – even if it is over a couple of days, especially given how much money for charity I have raised.”
Chris raised nearly £600 for CALM and Macmillan as part of his challenge. To put some perspective on how challenging conditions were for competitors in this years Thames Path 100, in 2017 when the event took place in near perfect running weather there were 88 out of 297 whom didn’t finish. By the time the runners reached the 71 mile checkpoint this year over 120 runners had dropped. With over 60 of these (or just shy of 20% of the starters dropping out at Henley including Chris). 181 finished (58%) with many of the favourites pre race getting into difficulties and having to retire. For Chris it is now rest/recovery/rehydration before focussing on the big things away from running. Namely his forthcoming wedding in August!