Wild Horse South Wales 200 – 2025

Date: Wednesday 21st May – Monday 26th May 2025

Official miles: 200 miles 

Strava says: 205.94 miles

Elevation: 30,000 ft /  9, 144 m

Weather: mostly hot, brief storm

Start: Southern Terminus of the Wales Coast Path, Chepstow

Finish: Worm’s Head, Rhossili

Route type: Point to point

Conditions: Dry and hard underfoot

Website link: Wild Horse South Wales 200 by Pegasus Ultra Running

Describe the route in three words: stunning, beautiful journey

Wild Horse South Wales 200 – Race Report

WH 200. Here we go! Second time around for me meant no nerves, no doubts (as I knew I could complete it) and just a whole heap of excitement as I knew what lay ahead! I was absolutely buzzing at the start line on Wednesday morning. In fact the whole of Tuesday from arriving at the NT car park, to boarding the coach, through to race registration in the evening was incredible. The lovely American couple who helped me carry my bag last year from the coach to my accommodation helped me again this year. When Cath arrived I helped her with her bags and we went to M&S together to buy Percy Pigs before bimbling on over to race reg.

The race registration was more like a family reunion as I knew so many people either taking part or crewing. I caught up with Checkpoint 8 (sorry Nicola, that’s what we called you until we learned your name!), Henry Drake, Matt Egner and girlfriend Laura, Iain Prentice (thank you for the iPhone charge loan!), Ceri, and many others. It overrun massively but we all had a great time, I had some chips and brie bites, as captured by the lovely Daz.

The weather on Wednesday morning was muggy and drizzly, perfect. I made friends with Des by attaching his tracker for him and he put my arm sleeves in my bag and made a joke about a banana…. it was funny.

I really enjoyed the gentle undulating 29 miles to CP1, I chatted a lot with Magdalena and I’m afraid to say that we had a good giggle at the expense of “Navigational error Kirsti”. Kirsti is the most beautiful Canadian, with the most wonderful bouncy, effortless run that I could only ever dream about, she was always smiling. One should never say “she looks like a runner” because we all come in different shapes and sizes however if you were to ask AI what a female trail runner looks like, it would surely generate an image of Kirsti, she really looked the business, even her hair swung with just the right amount of bounce. However, her nav was terrible. The amount of times she overtook me was immeasurable. I shouted to her a number of times to tell her she had gone the wrong way. Magdalena and I felt that the race would go one of two ways for her. 

1. She would set not only a course PB but a distance PB. 
2. She would be found in an exhausted heap slightly off trail around 100 miles in having run 250 miles.

Luckily neither was the case and she successfully navigated her way to the end in a sterling finish time.

Angela intercepted me just before St Michael’s’ s church which was a real surprise and joy, I was pleased to say I didn’t need anything from her, just a quick hug with Treacle, I popped into the church and marvelled at what was one of the coolest toilet doors I have ever seen! A great big huge arch of a door. I noticed that I was here at 10:50am, last year I reached the church at 11:12am.

I shared a few miles with Matt along with my recent life story. I asked him about his girlfriend Laura as they seemed very loved up and I love their story of how they got together – their first date visiting 3 different hospitals was not conventional! Laura would be crewing Matt daytime throughout and I was yet to find out how wonderful it would be to come across her beautiful smile many, many times along the route.

I was at CP1 White Castle (29 miles) 11:57am 70 minutes ahead of schedule, I had a turnaround here of just a few minutes before setting off on the 22 miles to CP2. I only stopped briefly to apply suncream and get my tracker reattached, it had fallen off about a mile before the CP. I reminder the marshal asking me what was wrong with it,  I said, “Well it’s in your hand rather than attached to me!” I hope he didn’t think I was too cheeky. Navigational error Kirsti and I headed out of CP1 at the same time but she turned back to let them know that she was leaving, never to be seen by me again. I cannot tell you the countless times I thought back to her to wonder whereabouts in Wales she could be. I took a calculated risk leaving CP1, I left with just 1 litre of water as I knew I could refill at Llanthony.

I came into Pandy to a line of supporters from the Mynydd Du running club, Jules would not let me stop for hugs and rightly said I needed to keep moving.

I hit Hatterrell Hill at 2pm, a whole hour quicker than last year. The weather really ramped it up a notch now, the sun was beating down, the views were INCREDIBLE and I ran with joy in my heart. As I neared the priory I realised I had timed my water to perfection and drained the last dregs as a kind gentleman seated on a camping chair rose to open the gate for me. Laura was at Llanthony Priory, I had a sense that she would be, she kindly refilled my bladders whilst I popped to the loo to empty my bladder, she sent me away with a handful of blueberries and a beautiful smile and the truest words “it’s so nice to eat fresh fruit when it’s hot like this”, it’s safe to say that I am smitten by her as much as Matt is, he is a very lucky chap indeed.

The climb up Bal Bach was enjoyable. Darren caught up with me and we conversed a short while before he charged on up the climb, he paused at the top to have some Nerds Clusters, he shared some with me and I ploughed on ahead, I did not see him again. I ran a bit with American brothers Taylor and Peyton and was shocked to find out that flight tickets and race entry combined was cheaper than entering a 200 mile race in America. I was heading towards Mynydd Du forest before I could blink, I passed Harry who was sat to the side of the trail, he told me his hamstring had gone, we had made friends over a picnic lunch the day before and were parked next to each other. Just before arriving at the CP2 to meet Bethan, Angela and Treacle, videographer Paul caught up with me and we had a pleasant chat, I admired his shorts. As I came into CP2 Rory Bennett was on his way out, we had shared quite a few miles together on the Beacons Way last year and it was fantastic to see him looking in such great form.

I arrived into CP2 Mynydd Du car park (51 miles) 5:50pm having already left a voice note for Angela to let her know my needs. I aired my feet and had some watermelon and a pasta pot, we refilled my bladders so that I was leaving with close to 2 litres of fluid, it was HOT!

CP2 means it’s time to pick up your buddy runner! Bethan and I left 1h 20m ahead of schedule, but just before we left I realised that Harry had somehow arrived, he was emotional to say the least, I chatted to him and I hope that I was able to offer him some comfort and inspiration.

Bethan and I headed straight up towards Grwyne Fawr Reservoir with the air temperature now a little cooler (thank goodness!). The reservoir water was higher than a few weeks ago, it looked beautiful.

Bethan and I had a BRILLIANT leg, we were slightly longer than I anticipated on this section but we were moving well, eating and drinking. We could see Des up ahead and caught up with him on Waun Fach as he had made a call home to wish his children goodnight. The sunset was magnificent, the views spectacular.

Bethan hadn’t seen the new path past PCC and we enjoyed trotting along it reminiscing of previous boulder hopping experiences here.

The head torch didn’t go on until the Table Mountain descent. We had an absolute blast on this whole leg, positivity was sky high.

Coming into CP3 Crickhowell (67 miles) 10:22pm 68 minutes up on my schedule felt super, Bethan handed over to Martin where she’d already called* ahead with my needs, this meant I had a super quick checkpoint turnaround of 24 minutes.

*I must mention that Bethan had tried 3 times to leave the voice note with my needs as I would not stop talking to her!

Martin and I set off from CP3 at 10:46pm – 64 minutes ahead of schedule – we had a lovely section of the route following the Beacon’s Way from Crickhowell towards Cwmdu, Bwlch and then into Llangynidr. I have lots of fond memories of this section, one not so fond one was with my friend Debbie and best running bud Francis. We were on a very cold snowy run in January and having survived the thigh deep snow and gale force winds at the top, Debbie was on the brink of hyperthermia just 3 miles from the car along this lower section. We had to dress her in all of the clothes we had between us and post food into her mouth – I told Martin the story and we commented on how different the weather was tonight! Martin guided me really well and even managed to take the correct path avoiding a super steep mini hill which I always find myself crawling up. There was a low branch where Martin called back loudly, “Be careful of the low branch” I promptly ran in to it and found myself sat on the floor having a good giggle, “That low branch?” the lump on my head remained for the remainder of the race. We got into CP4 Llangynidr (80 miles) at 2:27am… 3 hours and 7 minutes faster than last year and 83 minutes up on my schedule.

I had scheduled a 40 minute stop at CP4 but somehow I was 77 minutes, I was not too bothered though as I was still way ahead of schedule. I had a complete outfit change, brushed my teeth, ate and drank loads. I met event volunteer Carl Jones, a really lovely chap indeed, unbeknown to me I was to bump into him again at the caving club. I got into my PJ’s and tried to have 20 minutes scheduled sleep in the van. However, the sleep was unsuccessful even with Jo’s snuggly bed socks on my feet. Let’s just call it a nice lie down.

Jo and I set off at 3:44am Thursday morning, I cannot tell you how EXCITED I was for this section. I had been looking forward to it so much. 

A few reasons why:

• I knew Jo and I were going to have a blast
• I knew I would feel at this point that I had covered a significant distance 
• We got to do Tor y Foel (a fave of mine)
• I wanted to finally prove to Jo that there is no bog (smug face)
• We would pass the 100 mile marker

So many things to be excited for! 

Tory y Foel was fabulous, not only did we have the sunrise but we collected Jamie Walsh on the way up who was struggling with negative thoughts, we told him that we would sort him out, and boy did we! We talked at the poor man non-stop until he tried to run away from us but then had to come back as his nav was off. (He literally made a 90 degree left turn over a stile when we were supposed to be aiming straight.) We then talked at him non-stop even more, a lot of what we talked about was poo. Not poo as in silly chit chat, but actual poo. Poo stories, poo timings, poo this and poo that, we totally shattered the poor guy’s image of what two delightful female trail runners might talk about, certainly not girly stuff!

I was practically beside myself with smugness when we reached what is supposedly a super bog,

“Look Jo, look, it’s not a bog! You see, I told you, there is no bog here, I don’t know what your friend is talking about!”

Jo had to agree, it was pretty non-bog like. I did have a small moment of panic though as I recalled losing one leg down the tiniest of bogs here on a recce a few weeks ago where my sole purpose was to video the non bog. Talk about karma for being so smug about it.

We hit the long road section which goes around Pontsticill Reservoir and this really played havoc on my feet. The balls of my feet were developing hot spots and the upcoming relentless hard surface section which would carry on all the way into CP5 and beyond was going to be tough for me.

I was desperate for a cuppa so Jo and I started manifesting tea, before long I could see Treacle charging towards me, I cried happy tears when I saw her, she is the bestest crew dog. Incredibly the tea manifestation worked as Angela had it pre-made in a flask, I drank it in my chicken mug with four Rich Tea’s dunked in, ate some blueberries, drank some Huel, ate a banana and a Babybel, the second Babybel I gave to Treacle. Jo agreed it was the best tea ever! Angela sprayed the Smidge insect repellent on me and we all raised our eye brows at its questionable texture and colour, read into that as you will. This was a planned 10 minute stop, we were 17 minutes…. safe to say I’m a faffer.

Setting off again and heading on to the Taff Trail we sent a voice note to coach to get his thoughts on my hot spots which were making me walk more than run. Stu gave us some guidance as to what to do with my feet at CP5. It was frustrating as my planned super fast ParkRun pace down the Taff Trail was more like a hobble. It was also hot, really hot. Along here I reached a new low and I am ashamed to say that I said with some excitement, “I can’t wait to get on the canal”. Words I never would have dreamed of saying, I think that shows how sore my feet were!

Jo did a great job at reminding me to eat and drink, shout out to Snack’d as their flapjack bars are sensational!

There was a large group of cyclists, we got them to give us a cheer.

We reached the 100 mile marker and were greeted by a border collie (I think called Lily) and her owner, I had a lovely cuddle (with the dog) and we continued on.

The Taff Trail really was a lot longer than I remember and after the canal desire declaration Jo quoted me as saying, “I’m so excited by that bush, it seems like an event”. It was though, it was a bush which seemed to be in the middle of the path rather than the side. We got there and it was an optical illusion, it was indeed on the side of the Taff Trail. Another exciting moment on this arduous stretch was the little fluffy bits, I ran on them in the hope my feet could take a break.

I told Jo a bit more about Glenn who would be pacing me later and how he would make a really great coach.

As we trundled along the canal we saw some telescopes set up, we asked the bird watchers what they were looking at, an osprey! I asked if I could take a peak and sure enough, there was an osprey on some eggs in her nest. The rest of the route along the canal was a hot, hard slog, the sun was beating down and my hot spots were very ouchy, Jo helped pass the time by reliving some of her miles from her recent ultra along here, the CANUM.

We got in to CP5 Llanfrynach (107 miles) 11:23am 17 minutes ahead of my schedule, we had lost a chunk of my time gain but I really don’t think we could have done this section any quicker what with my sore, tender feet from the prolonged hard surface and the heat of the day. I think we had a great section, as Jo is a teacher, I am going to award us an A* not just for effort, but fun too.

At CP5 I was able to have chilli and rice, charge my watch and phone, have a foot spa and thigh massage whilst I ate and made an attempt at a 20 minute sleep. It was unsuccessful although I distinctly remember babbling on to Fran about some playing cards when he opened the door after my allotted time was up, so perhaps I did fall asleep for a minute or two, or maybe it was my first hallucination?

Sasha and I set off for our leg at 12:48pm, I had somehow spent 1 hour and 25 minutes here and was now 28 minutes behind schedule. All I can say is, poor Sasha, we set off at a wobble, I told her my blisters needed to warm up before I could run. We broke into a run but there were many, many walks too. It was so hot, the first 6 miles to Storey Arms are all on road too, not great news for my very tender feet. I was hot, I was tired, I was bothered. Sasha had the great idea of popping into the Llanfaes Dairy ice cream parlour, the best ice cream around! So many flavours to choose from but I played it safe and opted for vanilla. Whilst Sasha queued for the ice cream, I used the toilet. As I sat on the loo I looked at the floor. It looked very comfortable. I wondered how long it would take me to fall asleep if I lay down there. I must have been tired, I won’t even walk around a swimming pool with bare feet so to consider lying on a toilet floor is something I would not dream of… ever. I realised then that we were perhaps having a repeat of last year where I bonked on the lanes outside of Brecon. We set off, the ice cream was delicious and I hoped it would wake me up and cool me down. I told Sasha how tired I was and she suggested a trail nap, I’ve not had one before but I really felt like a kip on the side of the road was achievable. I lay down. Around three cars passed, not a single one checked on my welfare, I guess Sasha was sat there eating snacks with a big grin on her face so they must have felt all was in hand.

Angela and Treacle swooped in, I was bundled into the van and an alarm was set for 90 minutes, it was emergency nap time. I had a solid 20 minute kip then woke up eager to go and feeling refreshed. We’d missed the final super hot part of the day and the weather was cooling, thank goodness.

We stopped briefly at Storey Arms for a cool drink and then we set off again, as soon as my feet were back on the hills I found myself suddenly able to move quicker and with ease.

Boy did Sasha and I have a great section, made all the more impressive by the fact that Sasha did the whole thing off a map and compass, what a rock star. Last year this was one of the harder sections, it was pitch black, stormy, waterlogged and just very slow and difficult. This year though, lovely and dry, perfect temperature and great visibility.

We arrived at CP6 Penwyllt (133 miles) 10:08pm with our head torches still firmly switched off, how great is that? Last year I had arrived around 3am on Friday morning!

Angela, Treacle, Glenn, Jules and Nikki were there to give me a warm welcome, as was the lovely Carl who magicked up a glorious meal of mashed potato, cheese and beans.

A shout out to Jules and Nikki, they were my ‘crew for the crew’ – the logistics. They picked up pacer Glenn and Will’s cars and parked them at their finish points, this meant Angela could get a longer rest in between crewing me, it’s worth pointing out that Jules and Nikki did this in the middle of the night. Bethan, Martin, Sasha, Jules, Nikki and Francis are all members of the Mynydd Du Fell Runners, a wonderful club which I am proud to be a member of.

Glenn and I set off at 10:08pm just 28 minutes behind schedule which all things considering, was not bad at all. 

Glenn and I had a fab section to Llanddeusant, we were initially joined by the lovely Brogan from the checkpoint and on the climb to the side of Fan Hir, we did loose her as the climb continued on up Fan Brycheiniog. My cup of tea had kicked in big time and I absolutely flew up that hill, so much so that Glenn commented, “How on earth are you moving like that with over 130 miles in your legs?”

I chilled a bit once we hit the ridge line as the surface was sore on my feet, Glenn hadn’t been up here before and was slightly alarmed at the drops. I must point out, when I say chilled, it was in core temperature too, not just pace. I think the super fast climb had really raised my heart rate, got me a bit sweaty so I certainly felt much cooler than perhaps I would normally on the top, on the way down I was at the brink of needing to put gloves on. We ticked off the shelter, the trig and the Fan Foel cairn. My new Fenix head torch came into its own here, due to the sharp drops off the mountain and the technical underfoot, I put the head torch on the brightest setting, it was phenomenal. So grateful to have such a brilliant head torch.

I told Glenn during the initial climb that he’d not seen anything yet, we still had the ‘real’ climb to do. To be honest though, when we dropped down and then did the ‘big’ climb back up, it really wasn’t that bad, I think it must be worse in daylight as you can see it rising above you.

The rocky parts up top were tough on the tender feet and the descent down towards Llanddeusant was uncomfortable, especially the rocky dry river bed at the bottom, the air was a little blue at that point. I’d forgotten how annoying the overgrown section is to get up on to the lane but it was easy enough following where runners ahead had flattened the grass.

We did this section in under 4 hours, bang on my predicted time, so, so pleased to get in to CP7
Llanddeusant (143 miles) at 2am although certainly flagging energy levels and in need of a sleep.

Will was there to greet us both with a cup of tea, Angela and Treacle were making use of some down time and having a nap. I was so pleased to see Will but also a little out of it. I wolfed down some pizza, garlic bread and roast potatoes. Angela was woken and brought in my sleeping bag. I went upstairs and shared a dorm room with Des who was snoring, again I tried to sleep but could not. When Des’ alarm went off I got up too and ate some more pizza. I was concerned about my core temperature. I had put dry clothes on upon arrival but I felt damp to the touch even though I was dry. I discussed it with Will and Angela, I was really paranoid about getting too cold but we agreed the best thing was to bundle me up in a ton of layers and I would just keep stopping to strip as I warmed up.

Will and I left at 3:47am, 47 minutes behind schedule, I had lost more time, this was due to checkpoint time rather than run time, I’d had another really long stop of 1 hour and 47 minutes. This would not have been a problem if some of that time was spent sleeping!

Having only met Will once previously on podcast business this was very much a ‘get to know each other hike / run’. Will had the lovely task of taking me over my absolute WORST section of the route, the infamous boulder fields and then beyond that the place that I really should nickname the ‘Bermuda Triangle’, not once have I successfully navigated the bit after Mountain Quarry View, I have always found myself in a bog or scrambling slowly through long grass and bushes.

Admittedly, my mood was a bit flat as we left the checkpoint, I was a bit worried about my core temperature and I was anxious about what lay ahead. However, Will was an absolute diamond, turns out he’s a rock climber and I’d given him the BEST section for him! We initially walked the lanes so my blisters could warm up again, within 10 minutes I stopped to take the first layer off, and then proceeded to stop now and again to remove more layers, sometimes to put one back on and then again to remove it.

I do love the initial climb towards Garreg Las, those twin cairns are always a welcome sight. They do however signify the gateway to the boulder fields though!

Will casually strolled across the boulders with his hands in his pockets whilst I wobbled across, at times on my hands and knees. He made the section I dislike into a super fun day out. We spent a little time with Des who told us his life story before dashing off into the distance. Just as well as I was suddenly in need of my morning movement. As I squatted there, I chuckled to myself how I lead two separate lives, one as Ultra Mad Lizzie where it is totally acceptable to poo in front of an almost stranger and another as Liz where I would not even dream of farting in front of anyone!

As we approached Quarry Mountain View Will ran on ahead to put my order in for a cup of tea as Angela and Treacle were there for a quick pit stop, Treacle had found a friend and was playing ball. I have to say, that Will scampered down the hill at an alarming rate, it made me realise what a go slow I was on!

We then headed for the final part of my dreaded section, the Bermuda Triangle, by now though, I had total confidence in Will at making it enjoyable.

Sure enough, he guided me to perfection and we were in and out in no time, in fact we were off the Black Mountain at 8:42am, a full 7 hours ahead of my time last year!

I pointed out Carreg Cennen castle and told Will it would sneak up on us. In fact, it was very sneaky this time around as we were talking so much! As we reached the castle I was boiling and thinking about an outfit change, I remember looking at my watch as we climbed the hill to the castle, it was 9:25am, perfect as the coffee shop opened at 9:30am, and to think that last year I was the last customer of the day! I used their toilet and Will, Angela and I all ordered a drink, the coffee shop people were a little bit too friendly and chatty so I made my excuses and headed for the van as I feared we’d be caught all day talking!

As I trotted through the field towards the van I phoned my husband and realised I must be a bit sleep deprived as I talked a load of nonsense to him, either that or I was excited to hear his voice! I had a full outfit change at the van and caused much discussion in our WhatsApp group as I put shorts on, I am rarely seen in shorts on ultras! It did make me laugh out loud reading those messages a few days later.

We continued onwards to Llandybie and did spend a little time in what we called ‘the field of doom “, mainly turning in circles and wondering which way through the undergrowth to go.

We finally arrived at CP8 Llandybie (162 miles) at 12:15pm, I was now just under 2 hours behind schedule. It had taken Will and I just under 8.5 hours to do a section that took far, far longer last year. (Admittedly I had pencilled in just 7 hours for this section but I shall use tender feet and hot weather as my excuses!)

It was time for me to be handed over to Francis, I really feel for the guy, he always seems to get me when I am sleep deprived, delirious and drained of energy, the man deserves an award for knowing how to keep me motivated, keep me moving and keep me laughing, he literally talks non-stop at me and knows all the right things to say.

I was so excited to see Francis and to be at this point in the race that it was my turn to talk non-stop to him! I felt like I had days of news to tell him…. oh hang on, I did! The thing was though, in my excitement I couldn’t finish one story before telling  him the next, I must have told him a dozen half stories none of them having an ending so after 30 minutes or so of this he was still none the wiser as to what I had got up to since Wednesday morning! I finally calmed down and finished off all my stories.

We reached Tesco Ammanford and could see someone standing with Angela and Treacle, I was surprised for two reasons, I wasn’t expecting Angela to be there and I wasn’t expecting an additional supporter to be there either, it was Guto! He had popped out from work to come and say ‘hi’.

We stopped for a quick hug and a chat then continued on our merry way, over the wobbly bridge which moved around a lot more than I recalled, Francis jumping up and down on it probably helped the wobble.

In fact, just before the wobbly bridge, Fran told me to go round the corner to check if the coast was clear as he needed a pee already, sure enough it was, I called back to give him the green light. I then thought it would be hilariously funny if he came around the corner to discover I had disappeared, when I say I thought this would be hilariously funny, I really mean it. I shuffled my way into a bush barely being able to contain my hysteria, not only was I shaking, but the bush was too, and making some weird noises, Fran played along with my silly game though.

It was still pretty hot, my feet were tender but we were making progress. We had a slight nav hiccup towards the pylon, turning a bit too early and then struggling to get back on the line.

The trot across the grassland towards the trig certainly felt quicker than last year despite my reasonably regular complaints about my feet. We stopped and I put on an extra pair of socks wondering if that would help, now my feet just felt squashed in the shoes (I was now wearing Francis’ road shoes which are a size and a half bigger than my size).

I was desperately looking forward to seeing Angela at last year’s midnight picnic spot and was now on a torrent of complaints about my feet.

We finally reached Angela who made the brave decision to look at my feet and sort them out. It was amazing having someone be so kind to my feet after I had bashed them about on 170+ miles of hard surface and stones, I could not help but make all sorts of oooooh and ahhhhh noises plus lots of groans as she cleaned them first, then talced them and then dressed them, Fran even helped by tentatively holding a toe (he has a thing about other people’s feet, he HATES them).

Angela even put my socks on for me, it was quite blissful! I also switched my shorts for leggings as I knew it would start to cool down. This necessary stop cost half an hour, we set off again at 5:17pm, I was much more comfortable.

After around 4 or 5 miles, we heard the clanging of a gate, I turned to see a runner, I called to Fran, “are they in the race?”, they can’t be, she was fresh as a daisy, clearly someone out for their early evening 10km. As the lady drew near to me, she called out a friendly greeting, it was Brogan! We could not believe it! The last time she’d been seen was arriving in the checkpoint as I was ready to leave, complaining of a sore back. The woman was transformed, she looked incredible! According to Angela she’d passed our pit stop 30 minutes after I had left so Brogan clearly was making fab progress. As she tore off into the distance, I felt a bit miffed, why wasn’t I that fresh? Oh yeah, because I’d had 20 minutes sleep total. As we closed in on Loughor Boating Club, Angela had walked out to meet me with a Super Noodle so I could eat it on the move and go straight past Loughor Boating Club without stopping. Fran stopped at the van to refill his water and I carried on, I started with a very determined pace, this time thinking I wonder how far I can get before Fran caught me up! By the time he reached me, he was quite out of breath, apparently I had got quite far! We only had around five miles to the checkpoint and I was delighted to get in still in daylight. I thought back to last year how Fran and I had arrived first thing in the morning, we were massively ahead of my time last last year.

We reached CP9 Penclawdd Community Centre (183 miles) and I felt like I had lots to do. Nightfall and rain were on their way so I needed to dress appropriately, get my Fenix head torch ready and eat warm food. I had some cheese and mashed potato sandwiches as well as a cuppa with some Rich Tea biscuits.

Off we went, dressed for the incoming weather, head torches on but not switched on. The long road section is a drag, but we got it done a lot faster than last year, reminiscing about the fresh young lady with a swinging ponytail on her early morning run, when I saw her I tried to make myself look like more of a runner… but couldn’t. I was too tired. We had two moments along this road:

1. When the worlds biggest moth flew into my face and I totally freaked out, screaming my head off because it really made me jump. Luckily no one called the police.
2. When out of nowhere, a line of cows appeared, they also made me jump but I did not scream this time.

I wasn’t sure that we would get to see Angela again now until the finish as she’d said she was at the Britannia Inn and I couldn’t think where that was, when we went past one of her meeting spots the previous year, I was sure we would not see her. However, The Britannia Inn did materialise and I sat on the step of the van drinking some Huel milkshake whilst my waters were topped up. I felt a bit deflated at this point, my feet were so tender from the blisters and the tarmac seemed never ending. Off we went though, back into the night. We came across a landslide but the night time workers stopped their machinery and allowed us to pass through. We hit the fields, I knew that this was another fairly long drag and the surface here was harder and with more stones than I remembered. It all got a bit much and I started quietly sobbing to myself. It was a real pity party. I so wanted a strong finish and I didn’t feel very strong right now, I was still running but I was also walking a lot more than I had hoped at this point. I think Fran knew I was crying because he lengthened the gap between us, he did the right thing, engaging in conversation with me could have meant that I stopped to have a proper moan at him about how sorry I was for myself. He just casually ignored me. Until he realised that the quiet sobbing was never ending. He gave me a bit of tough love with a lecture on how it was a strong finish and then I ran out of tears. 

I really wanted to empty my shoes as they had some small stones in them, we knew there was a bench in a field so when we got to it I sat down and Fran helped me with my shoes. This became a moment. We removed our head torches as they were encouraging the moths to fly into our faces. We could hear heavy breathing and snorting, I looked up to see around five ponies circled around us, all with their noses outstretched as they investigated these two strangers in the night. I felt their calm energy transferring over to me, I could feel them wishing us well, the moon was shining down on us and we were so close to the finish now, it was a magical moral boost.

The sand dune was near now, and the moment my feet touched the sand all my feet tenderness evaporated away and I was able to start moving again, my spirits were reviving. As we neared the beach we could hear the waves crashing, I could feel the power but I couldn’t see them. And then we were there, at the coast’s edge and I could see how big the waves were. Both Francis and I screamed with awe and delight, it was another ‘moment’. We were so lucky to be here right now. My feet were moving faster and I was having to keep an eye on where I was placing them.

There were snails everywhere, I don’t mean just one or two, but hundreds and hundreds of snails. I suddenly had a thought. “Francis?” “Yes?” Am I having my first ever hallucination or are there really about a million snails here?” “Don’t worry, I can see them too, I’m trying not to step on them!”

Onwards we went, moving nicely now. I looked behind me, what was that I could see? Head torches! I counted them, six. Best case scenario that was three runners and three pacers. I screamed at Fran, “we’re going to get overtaken, there’s six head torches coming for us!” I started shifting my butt. One of my goals was for a strong finish and I felt that being overtaken by three runners and their pacers in the last few miles would not count towards my version of “a strong finish”. I really was running now as if my life depended on it. All pain evaporated from my aching tired body and the tender feet were healed as the adrenaline crashed through me. I was on for a ‘sprint’ finish now, the finish was just around the corner. Every few minutes I’d scream at Fran, “c’mon, get a move on we have to beat them” – funny really as clearly it was me that needed to get the move on!

Fran’s voice cut over the sound of my pounding feet and the crashing waves, “only about 5 miles to go!” oh lordy, now I’ve got to keep this pace up for longer than I thought! A 5 mile hard effort at the end of a 200 mile run. How’s that for a training run?! Let’s do this though! I kept checking behind, sometimes the head torches appeared to be catching us, sometimes I couldn’t see them at all. I’d periodically ask Fran, “Can you see them? Are they catching us?” sometimes he’d say they were gaining on us, sometimes he’d tell me that I wasn’t going to get overtaken now, I just had to keep pushing. In fact, I pushed so hard that my period started. Great. I could feel the blood coming out of me in waves, thank goodness for a night time finish, I was beyond caring anyway as to what I looked like and there is one thing I know about other runners and the running community, there is never any need for any embarrassment. It is what it is, just one of those natural things that female runners have to deal with.

I mostly felt incredible in these last 5 miles, bar the odd occasion when I genuinely thought my legs could fall off (in the same manner a Barbie doll’s legs pop off). I did slow to a walk once and say to Fran, “I think my legs are going to fall off”. He shouted back to me, “No they are not, keep moving”. I recognised where we were and I knew now that the finish was so close, I powered up the hill and my legs started moving faster and faster and faster. Fran sprinted ahead so he could get the finish line video, I went so fast though he couldn’t film me coming in, I was too quick for him! I hit the gate, it was over, I had done it.

What a finish, it was incredible. We definitely got our strong finish, the one that I had so desired. I wasn’t sure of the time but when I realised we were in before 3am I was ecstatic, my race plan was 69 hours, I’d somehow, miraculously delivered it in 68 hours and 50 minutes. After the hugs and the thank yous and the congratulations and the photos and of course the finish line burpee, I looked around a bit bewildered, I asked Rhys about the other runners, where were they? Rhys looked at Fran and Fran shrugged his shoulders, “I just went along with it” he said.

It was just lights, perhaps from the caravan park or maybe boats out at sea, and I guess because we were on the coastline they did appear to be moving at times. But thank you lights, you pushed me up into a new gear and gave me my goals, a strong finish and a time close to last year’s course record, I was just 13 minutes out. A pretty perfect finish!

What’s in the snack pack?

• 2x 500ml bladders water – with Phizz
• 2 litre capacity bladder with Phizz
• 5x snacks at the start – Snack’d bars, crisps, veggie sausage rolls,
• Protein Rebel caffeine gel
• Cliff blocs
• Salt tablets
• Hat
• Gloves
• Salomon Bonatti waterproof over mittens
• Fenix HM65R-T V2.0 head torch and spare battary
• Clip on LED (flashing red light)
• Compass
• Whistle
• Life Systems survival bag
• Garmin cable
• iPhone cable
• Powerbank
• OMM arm sleeves
• OMM Halo waterproof trousers
• Inov 8 Trailshell waterproof jacket
• Sunglasses
• Montane base layer
• Montane lite Fireball jacket (emergency warm layer)
• Mobile phone
• Harrier Helvellyn PRO Carbon Z-Poles and quiver
• Sugar coated stemmed ginger
• Vasaline
• Spare hair band
• Safety pins
• Compeed, plasters, surgical tape, spare socks
• Cash
• Food (1,000 calories minimum)
• OMM ultra flexi cup
• Poo kit and sanitary towel (toilet roll and bag to keep waste)
• Lip balm

Drop bag

I had access to my dropbag at every single one of the 9 checkpoints.

• Bag: small bright orange bag for my car keys
• Batteries x3
• Bin bag (for dirty kit)
• Buffs x4
• Complete outfits x2
• Deodorant
• Flannels (mini ones) x3
• Fly spray
• Food: 6x Snack’d, 6x Voom, 2x Cliff Bloc, 1x Salt Tabs 1x Protein Rebel Gel
• Foot care: surgical tape
• Foot care: gauze
• Gloves x1
• Hat x1
• Head torch: LED Lenser
• iPhone cable
• Leggings x2
• Lip balm
• Long sleeves x3
• Newspaper (for stuffing wet trainers)
• Pants x4
• Paracetamol
• Plastic bags
• Poles (spare, Harrier Catbells)
• Poo kit (toilet paper & bag) x2
• Power bank
• Scissors
• Shoes x2
• Shorts x2
• Sleep: eye mask
• Sleep: ear plugs
• Sleep: sleeping bag
• Sleep: pajamas (from my overnight stay in the B&B)
• Socks: waterproof x1
• Socks x5 plus toe socks
• Sports bra x1
• Sudocrem
• Sun cream
• Talcum powder
• Tee shirt x5
• Toothbrush & toothpaste
• Waterproof cap
• Waterproof jacket
• Waterproof trousers
• Windproof jacket
• Phizz & SiS tablets
• Vasaline
• Vests x2

Crew Items

This is what I had access to in Angela’s van.

• Antihistamine & fly bite cream
• Anti bac spray
• Batteries
• Bin bag (for dirty kit)
• Buffs x3
• Cash
• Complete outfits x2
• Deodorant
• Dry robe
• Fly spray
• Food: 6x Snack’d, 6x Voom, 2x Cliff Bloc, 2x Salt Tabs 1x Protein Rebel Gel, tea bags, red milk, Babybel, Hule milkshakes, grated cheese, instant mash, porridge pots, pasta pots, Super Noodle pots, biscuits, bananas
• Foot care: surgical tape
• Foot care: gauze
• Gloves x2
• Hat x1
• Head torch
• Hea torch: Fenix charging cable
• iPhone cable & plug
• Leggings x2
• Lip balm
• Long sleeves x2
• Newspaper (for stuffing wet trainers)
• Pants x4
• Paracetamol
• Plastic bags
• Poo kit (toilet paper & bag) x2
• Power bank
• Renee
• Rock tape
• Scissors
• Shoes x2
• Shorts x2
• Sleep: eye mask
• Sleep: ear plugs
• Sleep: sleeping bag
• Sleep: pajamas (from my overnight stay in the B&B)
• Socks: waterproof x2
• Socks x4 plus toe socks
• Sports bra x1
• Sudocrem
• Sun cream
• Talcum powder
• Tee shirt x3
• Toothbrush & toothpaste
• Trench foot cream
• Water bladders (for fast pit stop!)
• Waterproof jacket
• Waterproof trousers
• Phizz & SiS tablets
• Vasaline
• Vests x2

What I wore: Saucony Peregrine 13 ST (then 10 ST, then Fran’s road shoes), Garmin Fenix 7 Pro Sapphire Solar, buff, Sweaty Betty power leggings, Stance socks, Sweaty Betty cap, tee shirt, Dirty Girl gaiters, Salomon Adv Skin 12 running vest.

Lead up

I had a really good training block leading up to WH200. Coach Stu set me a number of weekly runs which usually includes an easy, a long run and then a run incorporating efforts and hills. I did not miss a single run as was in great health bar a three day cold which luckily did not affect things. I love to do my Blaze bootcamp sessions, I have recently only had time for around one a week of late.

Thanks to Protein Rebel I now have a regular supply of magnesium and collagen. I also started seeing a personal trainer four weeks before WH200 and felt that the work with Eddie at B2B Personal Training was hugely beneficial. I commenced a 30 day yoga with Adriene course around four weeks out too and on top of all this, I have also been seeing a physio once a week, I really feel that I am lucky enough to have all the tools available to me to get the best out of myself.

I came off caffeine two weeks before the race and started on caffeine at CP3.

Morning preparations

Staying the night before a race in an unfamiliar bed always means a lack of sleep, I thought I was being clever this year booking the exact same room that I stayed in last year! However, I did not get too much sleep, it is just far too exciting! In the morning, I had my breakfast which was a porridge pot and a banana. I also had a decaf tea. I had a bit of a stretch too. Cath and I ambled on over to the start area at about 5:15am.

Summary

I had 2 goals going into this race:

1. Strong finish
2. Get as close to the 2024 female course record time as possible (68h 37m)

It’s safe to say that I totally smashed these goals! It would not have been possible without my team… my army. An absolutely phenomenal team effort:

• Crew: Angela and Treacle
• Pacers: Bethan, Martin, Jo, Sasha, Glenn, Will and Francis
• Pacer logistics: Jules and Nikki
• Coaches: Stu (run), Sarah, Hannah and Matt (boot camp), Eddie (PT),
• Condition: Hannah (sports massage), Muhammed (physio)
• And of course, my husband for keeping our home life together

Lessons learned

• Sleep strategy: is key to getting a 200 mile race complete! Ok, I was unable to sleep but I allowed myself a decent rest earlier on in the race and I believe this was a big help.
• Pacers: were an integral part of my finish time being on plan, they kept me moving and refueling and kept me in good spirits too.

Results

Finish time: 68hr 50m

Overall: 16/101

Lady: 4/19

Wild Horse 200 mile 2025 results: click here

Strava link: click here

Thank you to my sponsors

B2B Personal Training

Eddie is helping me prepare for my England BYU debut in July, we started working together just 4 weeks before WH200 – however the benefits from his tailor made plan have been noticeable from the off.

B2B Personal Training

Lake Therapy

Physiotherapist Muhammed is a magician and the work we have done together has been hugely beneficial, through a combination of weekly sports massage, acupuncture, assisted stretching, passive stretching and PNF stretching (proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation) he has ensured that I was in great condition on the start line, plus my recovery was seamless. He also sets me homework to do, which I do actually do!

Muhammad works out of Lake Therapy in Farnham where new clients can benefit from a free 60 min initial consultation and 15 min report of findings (value £100) – be sure to mention Lizzie upon booking to receive this free discount from Lake Therapy.

Protein Rebel

The team at Protein Rebel keep me in constant supply of magnesium and collagen which aid my recovery from every day training and support my joint health and function. If you’d like 15% off your order at Protein Rebel, use code LizzieG15 at checkout.

Fenix

The HM65R-T V2.0 was a FANTASTIC addition to my running kit and the performance was exceptional, even on the lowest setting it was super bright, the battery life was spot on too, it did not need a single charge over the course of the race. Highly recommend this bit of kit.

Professional photos by: Matt Phillips Photography