In a community of scores of thousands we couldn’t hope to exhaustively survey its extremes – and everyone’s a winner who takes part. So instead we’re celebrating some random records, and the fact it takes all sorts to make a Walk 1000 Miles challenge and a world!
(*Ever so slightly random ones)
Oldest challenger
Pamela Wright was 80 when she did her first 1000 miles in 2016! She managed the thousand miles until 2020 when her hips gave way, dipping to 500 and then 200 this year due to operations on her hips and nasty falls. But she’s determined to bounce back: “I’m hoping next year when I’m 88 I’ll do 500 and the following year when hopefully my legs will be fitter I’ll do 1000 miles for my 90th year! A girl is allowed to dream and set a high goal!” You inspire us Pam!
Biggest day
31-year-old Kate Elizabeth walked an astonishing 63 miles in one (long) day, on a hike for Mind in the Peak District. She says: “It was exhausting and involved 2000m of ascent, but I did it in 21 hours so I was chuffed! I’m a bit surprised after that it took me til November to reach my 1000!”
Oldest completer
Carole Clements’ 82 year old husband Phil has completed the 1000 miles plus 20% for six years with two artificial hips and two stents. Long may he continue!
Farthest flung
46-year-old Renée Cummings has marched to a mighty 2500 mile where she lives in faraway Turkmenistan – a landlocked Central Asian country bordered by Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Afganistan. She says her advice to fellow challengers is to “Just put one foot in front of the other until you get where you are going” – although in her case that should probably stop before Iran.
Most mixed DNA(!)
Jenny McGinlay, 62 from Dorset, is partly herself and partly an anonymous young woman from Germany! “I had a donor stem cell transplant last year, replacing my own bone marrow with donor stem cells which miraculously started making new blood cells after a few weeks. So my blood is my donor's, the rest of me is just boring old me! I've set a realistic target of 850 miles because I’m recovering from cancer treatment and still suffer fatigue. But doing the challenge has given me increased energy and fitness, and helped me focus on the positive.”
Most dedicated
Jan Mayne started walking in 2010 and has walked the year in miles ever since. 12 years on and she’s on target for 2023, and loves being part of the Walk 1000 miles community. “Not sure how I’m going to break the habit!” she says.
Heaviest
David Rodrick was 20 stone 12 at the start of the year, and on the verge of an operation on an aortic aneurysm. He’s now down over 2 stone, the op’s off and he feels 10ft tall!
Most countries walked
Louisa Gibbs from Surrey walked her 1000 miles in a staggering 24 different countries! “I work on a cruise ship and always make the effort to walk a couple of miles in each new port, topping up with laps of the deck! It really helps my mental health while we’re at sea and whether it’s in nature or in urban areas walking is the best way to get under the skin of a place!”
Longest dog walk
Bella has walked a whopping 2700 miles this year in the company of owner Helen Thornley. She was a St Bernard when she started!
Tallest
Michael Hardman adds 6’ 7” to any summit and used to be even taller at 6’ 9”. He says it’s an advantage crossing streams and walking uphill but makes descents slower and he’s lost count of the number of times he’s bashed his head on branches.
Most times beaten by a stile
Jackie Edwards has had nine embarrassing incidents with the dreaded stile – “I've been stuck in a narrow ones – too fat – been stuck getting over them (too short) and I’ve even broken rotten ones!”
Biggest boots
Jeff Sparkes from Bristol wears whopping size 13 boots, which supported his 6’ 5” frame on a slightly mistimed 1000-mile completion – walking two miles in circles round and round Glastonbury Tor.
Most completions
Christine Henry celebrated her TENTH 1000 miles this year after first seeing a passing mention of the possibility of doing it in the March 2014 edition of CW. “I finished work in Sept 2013 and thought ah, there’s a project for me!” she says – and she’s never stopped!
Lowest lung capacity (obviously)
An inspiring head-to-head: hypersensitive pneumonitis-afflicted Meg Lewis, with only 48% lung function who says the challenge is “the underpinning of my life” and eight-time 1000-miler Kate Lowe, who since 2016 has had only one lung – and says the challenge helped her feel “Like the me from years ago”.
• Reckon you might be a record breaker? Email us!
