Evans completes virtual Three Peaks Challenge
Lockdown prevented intended real life attempt
LOUGHBOROUGH ultrarunner Tom Evans has completed a world-first ‘ Virtual Three Peaks Challenge’, all on his own treadmill indoors: climbing over 3,000m and covering a distance of nearly 40km in under five hours.
The runner, who is used to winning ultramarathons hundreds of kilometres long wanted to try and break the actual record for completing the iconic challenge this year, which involves climbing and descending the highest peaks in England, Scotland and Wales in the quickest time possible.
As he couldn’t do that due to the national lockdown Evans, a former British Army captain, completed it virtually instead.
He ran the steep gradients of Snowdon (5.5km up 723m, 13.2% average) in 1.17:00, Scafell Wasdale Head (4.5km, 910m 20% average) in 1.10:00 and Ben Nevis (8.8km, 1335m, 15.1% average) in 1:55:00, hitting stop on the treadmill at 4 hours 32 mins.
Tom added: “Normally when you’re doing this challenge you get a bit of a break and have to drive between the mountains, but we just had to keep going on the treadmill, non stop.
“Typically the last 10/15 minutes each climb were really tough, but I had to dig deep and keep going. It was pretty savage!
“Physically it was so tough, but mentally too it was really challenging.
“The great thing about trail running is the terrain that you get to run on, the views that you get to see, and the community of runners, so doing it in the pain cave on a rainy day makes it that bit tougher.” ■