I’ve dusted off my previous page at https://www.julianwhite.uk/ldwa-100/ all about the LDWA 100 to bring it up to date for 2026.
This interview is with Rebecca Lawrence who has completed eleven LDWA hundreds which is some considerable achievement. And the little mistake that she made on the Yoredale 100 is very much one that I might make…. There’s lots of useful tips here that will likely be very useful for anyone attempting their first 100.
Q. Could you briefly introduce yourself and say how you first became involved with the LDWA and long-distance walking?
A. I first started walking in my teens. I had a horse on loan, details of which I kept from my parents (as I couldn’t quite afford it out of my paper round money so it involved supplementing the costs out of my dinner money which they would not have allowed if they had have known) so I had to be very vague about my whereabouts at the weekend and couldn’t ask for lifts to places. I started walking the 3 miles there and 3 miles back on a regular basis and it kind of went on from there, my love of walking and the independence it gave me away from my parents. I remember being really proud of myself for walking 15 miles in my adulthood and then going on holiday and meeting someone who told me about the LDWA and mentioned the 100! I couldn’t believe people could walk 100 miles in one go but I was curious and joined and discovered a whole world of challenge walking and like minded people. The first challenge walk I signed up to was the Pathfinder March – 46 miles and it nearly killed me. I wore heavy boots and had done very little preparation but finished. I then went onto do the Poppyline 50 – a fabulous event held in Norfolk. It was when I was sat in a tent in a forest at 3am with people who all thought it “normal” that I really felt accepted and knew I had found my people. Away from walking I am a keen horse rider and work wise I manage the Audiology Department at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
Q. You’ve started 15 Hundreds and completed 11 of them. What keeps bringing you back to the distance after so many years and so many miles?
A. The 100 is a beast to be respected. There’s no other way to describe it. You learn so much about yourself and how to improve your resilience in all situations in life and not to fall at the first hurdle no matter how tough things can get. Because of this I consider that it’s a mental challenge. Of course you do have to be physically able to do it as well, but the real strength comes in carrying on when your body is screaming at you to stop, working through your lows and appreciating the highs, and it’s the people you meant along the way. For me the real heroes are those who take every second of the 48 hours allowed. I do think its quite addictive. At the time you tell yourself “no more I’m done” and then a few days later you find yourself looking at next years……
Q. If you complete the Hunnypot 100, it will be your 12th finish. Does that still feel special, or does experience make the whole thing feel more familiar now?
A. Every 100 is special and I have very clear memories of each one. Each one has its own challenges and sting in the tail. Hunnypot 100 does feel particularly special as I love trees and the area is full of them! Sussex and Kent are real hidden gems in terms of beauty and well worth the trip round the M25. The Elephant Bear and Bull was especially special. I did it in aid of a colleague who was an inpatient for a while. Unfortunately whilst recceing the route for it; I had planned to walk 25 miles each day over 4 days, I turned and fractured my ankle 4 miles in! I carried on with the recce, vomiting with pain on the first evening, wrapped my ankle up with vet wrap and did the other 3 days. After a week when it was still hurting I finally got it x rayed and was told it was fractured. When I asked about doing the 100 in 3 weeks time the Consultant laughed. I emailed the organisers to make sure they were happy with me to give it a go and I finished it. I was being sponsored so it was important to me. Sometimes having something to drive you on like that really helps.
Q. Tell me more about what happened at the Yoredale 100!
A. Oh dear…..well it was a sunny weekend and I was going quite well initially into the first night, but there was a head wind. It didn’t seem to matter which way you turned, the gale was straight in your face which started to sap energy. I walked through Sat night but sometime after lunch on Sunday I started to really flag. I had made a fundamental error and ignored sore points on my feet which had now exploded into blisters and I had 20 miles still to go. With the head wind I was down to 2mph and it felt like trying to walk with the handbrake on. Factor in a lovely pub, everyone sat outside looking happy and relaxed…..just one pint won’t hurt would it?! Well I don’t need to tell you the rest. That was game over. I had some friends who were using my Travelodge room whilst I was walking and they had decorated it with congratulations posters. I couldn’t tell them the real story…
Q. Having completed 11 and not completed four, what have the unsuccessful attempts taught you that the successful ones perhaps didn’t?
A. Interesting question. I believe we do learn more from our unsuccessful attempts than we do our successful ones.
1 – don’t go into any pubs en route until the end
2 – Feet feet feet – do not ignore sore spots / discomfort
3 – invest in waterproofs that really are waterproof
4 – don’t hand your tally in straight away, have a drink, some food and a chat
5 – see it as a series of short walks, never allow yourself to calculate how much you have left to go until you are in single figures
6 – don’t do anything new
7 – allow yourself to eat and drink as much as you want and need
8 – take rehydration salts
9 – go with a clear head with no stresses – if you are stressed about needing to finish by a certain time you might as well not start
Q. How do you approach training and preparation now compared with when you were taking on your first few Hundreds?
A. I am more prepared re the route – you don’t want to go wrong even for a few yards. Training wise this can be tricky, I work full time but I try to do a 25 miler every other week from Feb onwards and the 50, but it is important not to start the 100 tired. The rule I give myself is you should be able to do 25 miles comfortably. The best training I find is the recce – 25 miles every day for 4 days 3-4 weeks before the event is the best training you can have in my opinion.
Q. Food can become strangely important on a 100-mile event. After so many starts, what have you learned about what keeps you going and what do you look forward to?
A. I look forward to anything that slips down. Pasta and cheese are favourites, egg sandwiches or just plain boiled eggs are normally quite palatable. I can’t stomach anything too heavy and have a meal replacement shake in my breakfast bag as I don’t seem to be able to cope with the cooked breakfast without it making me nauseous.
Q. You’ve recced about 70% of the Hunnypot route, though section 4 seems to have already made its intentions clear. How useful do you find recces, and does getting lost beforehand help or merely add to the sense of impending doom?
A. Recce’s give me confidence. Although I often find myself walking with people, I have started most hundreds these days on my own. The thought of being lost in the Ashdown forest at 3am on my own doesn’t fill me with excitement. I worked out how and where I went wrong on the recce so hopefully won’t repeat. I’ve always been a map and Route Description kind of girl, butting against following a GPX breadcrumb trail but after getting lost on the recce and realising that Ashdown forest will be my night section I have paid for OS maps on my phone to have as backup. Recce’s also act as a way of seeing and enjoying the route without the pressure of the event and if you do sections consecutively, its an excellent way to get that extra bit of fitness in before the event.
Q. What advice would you give to someone taking on their first 100, especially about pacing, keeping calm and not being lured into a comfortable pub at mile 80?
A. You’re going to have low points and that’s normal. It doesn’t mean you won’t finish.
Don’t go with any expectations as to when you think you might finish as that can be soul destroying – expect to go through a 2nd night and anything less is a bonus.
See it as a series of short walks – you might think you can’t get to the finish when you are having a low point, but can you make it another 7 miles to the next checkpoint?
Don’t go off too fast – I personally prefer walking on my own and joining up with people for a few miles that happen to be going at your pace as you can speed up when you want and slow down when you want. Walking as a group is tiring.
Take as much or as little time as you need at checkpoints.
Don’t navigate by committee, have a clear idea where you are going and stick to it.
Don’t go to the pub however inviting it may look….
Q. After 15 starts, are there any small signs early in a 100 that tell you whether it is going to be a good day, a difficult day, or one of those character-building little arrangements that the LDWA seems to specialise in?
A. The weather can play a really important part. If its tipping it down at the start line it just adds another factor of difficulty into the equation.
Q. When you look back after the Hunnypot 100, what would make this year’s event feel like a success for you?
A. Knowing whatever happens, I’ve tried my best. You can never predict how its going to go and there are many factors out of your control. Finishing would be lovely but just being part of this amazing event is a real privilege and a credit to all the organisation and volunteers.