My Journey as an Endurance Athlete: The People Who Inspire Me

Guys…I’m excited.

There are only about 3 weeks to go before we finally venture to the one destination I’ve been planning for over the last…well, several months at least. Mont Blanc…here we come!

But all the physical and mental preparation aside (a huge amount of both still underway), this made me think about not just why I want to do this so much, why I am so keen to conquer yet another peak and see the view from the top, but also who has been inspiring me along the way.

We all need heroes, right? I don’t mean Spiderman and co. (although they are perfectly acceptable heroes if that’s what rocks your boat!), but those people out there you look up to when you are feeling you might just let it go, that maybe you’re not quite up to it, or when you doubt your reasoning in the first place. Those people you really see, really listen to, because they are explaining feelings you understand – that’s where true inspiration comes from, no matter what your goal is.

So, all this said and done, I really wanted to share my top ‘selection’ of important inspiration before I begin packing my bags and head to my next adventure, and here are my very top choices among many others…

Ross Edgley

As an endurance athlete myself I love the science side of British athlete, ultra-marathon swimmer Ross’ approach to huge events such as his most recent “Longest Swim”: a non-stop feat of endurance which lasted 510km (317 miles)!

I first started following his adventures when he announced the monumental challenge of his Great British Swim in 2018. Declaring he’d be swimming around the UK without touching land until completion, Ross started his adventure in June and, in November of the same year - 157 days, 1,792 miles later – he dutifully completed it.

Followed by a team of experts to keep both tides and his health fully monitored, he swam on a typical 6-hour activity, 6-hour rest, and 6-hour activity pattern.

On repeat. I feel we need to pause for a minute here…

Through the pain – the challenges were documented in a weekly internet series called "Ross Edgley's Great British Swim" – he managed to complete what was later recognised as "The World's Longest Staged Sea Swim" by the  World Open Water Swimming Association and he is quoted to have said, "It's my hope that people remember the Great British Swim as an example or experiment in both mental and physical fortitude."

Absolutely!

Of course, Ross being Ross, this incredible feat was not only impressively preceded by "The World's Strongest Marathon" when he pulled a 1,400 kilograms (3,100 lb) car around the Silverstone circuit in Northamptonshire, but also followed by many others, in water and on land, including completion of the "World’s Longest Rope Climb" at in the Ashdown Forest of Sussex - 8,848 metres (29,029 ft), the exact height of Mount Everest - in 19 hours and 54 minutes, both to raise money for Teenage Cancer Trust.

What impresses me the most here is not just the incredible strength, endurance, and ability shown during these events, but also the research, scientific knowledge and preparation which make all these ‘super-human’ experiences possible. It’s exciting, it’s inspiring and I will never get tired of watching him moving the bar higher and higher!

Russ Cook (AKA the Hardest Geezer)

Most famous for his very recent accomplishment when he became the first person to run the full length of Africa (more about this in a minute) Russ is a true endurance athlete, who actually did quite a lot before finding (well-deserved) fame! I’ve been watching him throughout his list of events…

In 2019, he ran from Istanbul in Turkey to his native Worthing with no support team – 1,800 miles in just 68 days – and, in 2020, he set a new world record for the fastest marathon run whilst pulling a car (he did that in 9 hours and 56 minutes).

Scariest of all, in 2021 he decided it’d be fun to be buried alive for 20 days with just 20 litres of water by his side (and a ventilator tube, of course) and livestream the event.

And then, there’s Project Africa…In April, 2023, I watched him departing from South Africa to attempt something no human had ever done before and - 9,900 miles and 16 countries later, after being robbed at gunpoint, suffering bouts of food poisoning,  and several other challenges – I watched him arriving in Tunisia in April 2024.

Russ is open about the personal issues he has faced throughout his life which spurred him on his path to endurance, but it’s his grit and determination that I am so impressed by! He dared to stand against the world and prove he could do it, from facing criticism and disbelief to ‘converting’ the crowds and receiving the support he fully deserved in the last few days of his journey. There’s a lot to learn here…

Kenton Cool

A world-leading high-altitude climber and mountaineer – you can already see where I’m going here – Kenton Cool simply is a true adventurer, and this is what I love most about him!

He has reached the summit of Mount Everest an incredible 18 times, including two instances where leading Sir Ranulph Fiennes’ expeditions in 2008 and 2009.

He is also known for completing many more feats, including 45 notable journeys to the Greater Ranges in the ‘Roof of the World’/’High Asia’, and, in 2013, he became the first person to climb Nuptse, Everest and Lhotse without returning to base camp.

I’m pretty sure I’m not the only climber around the world he has inspired to take on a challenge! 

Nims Purja

Nirmal Purja MBE (or Nims, as he is best known) has climbed all 14 eight-thousanders (those are the 14 mountains recognised by the International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation – or UIAA - as being more than 8,000 metres in height above sea level, and sufficiently independent of neighbouring peaks). He did this in 8 months and 6 days, using bottled oxygen, and, although no longer holding the fastest record for this incredible experience, he remains the first person to have reached the top of Everest, Lhotse and Makalu in 48 hours!

To add to this already incredible CV, in 2021, Nims and a team of nine Nepalese climbers completed the very first winter ascent of K2 which, at 8,611 metres above sea level, is officially the second-highest mountain on Earth.

When Nims climbed Lobuche East in the Himalayas in 2012, he had no previous experience as a mountaineer either…

His legacy though also resides - I feel -  in creating a new way of looking at mountaineering after his incredible documentary “14 Peaks” which highlighted the hard work that the Sherpa people in the high peaks do and the risks they take daily.

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His outlook on life is joyful and about building rapport with his incredible team and family, and that’s something really close to my heart. There are so many aspects to mountaineering, and physical and mental endurance – as important as they, of course, are – are only two of them.

I feel inspired, humbled and excited by all these unbelievable athletes and human beings. So much more to learn, so much more to do! See you after Mont Blanc…