Banbury runner to take on 250-mile epic ultramarathon fundraising challenge

After completing a several marathons and ultramarathons, long-distance runner Steve Snow has now set his sights on one of the toughest running challenges the UK has to offer, the incredibly demanding Thames Ring 250 race.

The Thames Ring 250 is one of the longest distance races in the country and was for many years the longest non-stop race in Europe. Runners have 100 hours (four days and four hours) to cover a 250-mile circuit, which sees them follow river banks and canal paths from south Oxfordshire, to west London, then north all the way to Northamptonshire, before passing through Banbury on the way south to the finish line.

Steve's motivation is to complete the longest distance he has ever attempted, to test his body in ways it has never been tested before, and to raise money for a local charity that has assisted a personal friend of his.

Steve said: "I have always wanted to do this one because it is one of the longest races. I watched some of it last year, and it looked like such a challenge, and I want to see how far I can push my body.

"I previously ran the Grand Union Canal race, which is 145 miles, and I ran that continuously in 33 hours; other runners talked about getting sleep deprivation and hallucinations, but I didn’t find my limit on that race, so I want to see how far I can take my body with this one."

Alongside achieving his personal goals, Steve has also created a JustGiving page where people can sponsor his mammoth challenge, with all the money raised being donated to the Banbury Young Homelessness Project.

The charity helped a personal friend of Steve when they were struggling, so he wanted to support them and give something back to the charity, which offers help, advice, and guidance to young people (13–25) in Banbury facing financial difficulty and homelessness.

Steve said: "The charity really helped one of my partner's friends, who had just moved to the area and had been through a rough time with her health and mental health. They were absolutely fantastic with the support and help they offered. There are lots of young kids struggling these days, and I thought it would be nice to give some support to this smaller charity."

The race will test Steve’s mind as much as his body, as he will run throughout the night and have to navigate using maps with only himself for company for most of the race. Talking about his mindset during the race, Steve said: "I try to view it as an adventure, when I have done 100-mile races in the past, I just try to see it as a nice day out with a few breaks at the checkpoints to stretch and get some food.

"You always have bad points, but you have to push through them, keep focusing on the next checkpoint, and just keep putting one foot in front of the other and try to blank out any pain that you get."

To support Steve and sponsor his ultramarathon challenge, visit his JustGiving page here: www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/steve-snow?