Preparing for the West Highland Way with Colin Bathe

Running 44@60 - tips, ideas and advice for your first ultra marathon or marathon

On this episode of the Running 44@60 podcast I'm talking to Colin Bathe as he is busy preparing for the West Highland Way Race

The West Highland Way Race gets underway at 1am on Sunday June 22nd starting from Milngavie which his about 10 miles north of Glasgow.

The 95 mile route with 15,000 feet of elevation makes it way to Fort William

The 300 runners, which the race is restricted to, have 35 hours in which to complete the route.

There are a few rules not always seen on other ultras

All runners must have 2 crew members and a crew vehicle. One of those crew must be capable of running the second half with them as a support runner if needed.

If you on schedule for 24 hours or less you are mot allowed a support runner

Poles aren’t allowed but iPods and mp3 players are

You are advised not be noisy on your way to the first checkpoint when passing through the village called DryMen

Checkpoints don’t offer food only water

Crews and the runner have to carry all the food and drink required

And they weigh you at registration but not anymore out on the course

Colin’s crew will record snippets with him during the race and we’ll have him back on post-race to tell us all about it.

This is episode 148 of the Running 44@60 podcast. You can access and download the previous 146 episodes via your usual podcast app or on the Running 44@60 podcast page.

Host Trevor Lee ran his own first ultra in 2021 - the 44 mile Classic Quarter - hence 44@60. Trevor has written a book about his buildup and adventure – it is both a business and running book and is available on Amazon via this link: 12 Business Lessons from Running an Ultra Marathon. Each sale generates £5 for Childrens Hospice South West.
Trevor's big running goal is now the Arc of Attrition 50 in January 2025.

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The Running 44@60 podcast began as a learning / motivational tool for host Trevor Lee in his quest to run a first ever ultra - the Classic Quarter in 2021 - here's the story of Running 44@60
The first episode was broadcast in August 2019. The final episode - number 173 - went out on January 31st 2025.
Trevor wrote a book on the back of the Classic Quarter: 12 Business Lessons from Running an Ultra Marathon - all proceeds go to the Children's Hospice South West