AS two experienced athletes begin the eight-week countdown to the beginning of an incredible endurance event, Evening Mail readers are being given the chance to get involved and take on their own personal challenges. EMMA PRESTON reports


Sonja Foster is aiming to complete 10 marathons in 10 consecutive days EIGHT weeks from today, Sonja Foster will run a marathon. The next day, she will run another marathon. Another the day after that. 

In total, the 46-year-old grandmother, of St Quintin Avenue, Barrow, will complete 10 marathons in 10 consecutive days. 

Starting on Friday May 13, Ms Foster will be one of 11 runners to take on Brathay Trust’s famously gruelling 10in10 challenge. 

They will complete the final lap of their 262-mile slog on Sunday May 22, the day of the charity’s annual Windermere marathon and inaugural half marathon. Their efforts will mark a special year at Brathay, which is celebrating its 70th anniversary as well as the 10th year of its marathon and 10in10 events.
Sonja Foster crosses the finish line in 2015

Another major milestone for the Ambleside-based national children and young people’s charity in 2016 has been the launch of its Focus on Furness initiative. 

The new scheme aims to reach out to those living in Barrow and the surrounding areas to equip them with the skills and confidence they need to progress, the charity’s figures having shown that 20.4 per cent of the town’s children are living in poverty. 

In particular, the new project will involve work with girls who need to build self-awareness to stay safe and have healthy relationships, as well as those living in or on the verge of entering the care system. 

It is the work of Brathay, and its Focus on Furness appeal especially, that has given Ms Foster the push to pursue a second 10in10 after completing the 2015 challenge. 

She said: “I think, last year, it was more about the challenge of actually doing it. But while I was up there, I got to see first hand all the work they’re doing and speak to the people they’re supporting, and they do some amazing things. 

“When they said they were setting up a hub in Furness, right on my doorstep, I knew I wanted to help those youngsters. That’s what it’s all about this time - getting as much money as I can to help those young people and improve their life chances.” 

As well as working as a fitness instructor, swimming teacher, duty manager and lifeguard at The Park Leisure Centre, and as a swimming teacher at Nuffield Health, Ms Foster volunteers as a run leader for Parkside Panthers and is a dedicated member of Barrow and Furness Striders. 

In spite of her hectic schedule, she has so far built her training up to around 70 miles a week, with this week’s efforts including back-to-back marathons at the Gin Pit Double in Manchester today and Sunday. 

Over the next three weeks, Ms Foster will up the ante to the point where she will run between 90 and 100 miles per week for another three weeks, with her training schedule set to include the Manchester Marathon on April 10 and the Boston Marathon on April 18. 

She will fly home from the US in time for the London Marathon on April 24, which will be her last major event before the 10in10. 

Ms Foster’s training schedule will drop to 50 miles that week, 25 miles a week with two weeks to go, and taper out in the seven days leading up to the 10in10. 

While her training programme makes for mind-boggling reading, Ms Foster hopes to inspire Evening Mail readers to take on their own challenges as she begins her eight-week countdown. 

Places are still open for the Brathay half and full marathon events, and the 10in10 runners will be hoping to see plenty of friendly faces from the running community. 

For those who are not yet ready for longer-distance events, but have tried running before and want a new challenge, Sonja has teamed up with the Evening Mail to set an eight-week 10k training programme. 

For anyone who has never run before, an eight-week couch to 5k programme will also be available via weekly updates on the Evening Mail website. 

Asked her top training tip, Ms Foster said: “When it really hurts, think of a song you really really like and sing it in your head. Sing it out loud even! 

“I remember last year, running through Bowness with hundreds of people there, singing Queen’s Don’t Stop Me Now . It’s mind over matter.” 

A well-known face among the running community, Ms Foster has become a role model for those taking up running for the first time. 

After completing her first marathon in London in 2004, she was asked to train someone for the Cancer Research 5km Race For Life and was inspired to set up a host of beginners’ programmes while her own running went from strength to strength. 

She advises new starters not only to listen to their bodies, but to find a friend or group to run alongside. 

Ms Foster said: “I remember the early days - I remember trying to run three miles and just how much it hurt. I hurt for days afterwards. 

“The group from Barrow Striders who ran with me in those early days were an inspiration to me, and they still are. As are all those people who come to the beginners’ training programmes and the local running groups and who say to you afterwards, ‘That changed my life’. 

“Everyone is finding something different challenging, but you can do anything you put your mind to.” 

In next Friday’s Evening Mail read about Ulverston landlord, Paul Dewar, who will be joining Ms Foster for the 10in10 as the final leg of his ultimate triathlon challenge. 

The Evening Mail will also be running a weekly column tracking both runners’ progress in Sport every Thursday, as well as providing online video training blogs. 

Visit https://www.justgiving.com/Sonja-Foster4Furness/ to sponsor Ms Foster.

Feeling Inspired?

Places are still open for the 10th annual Brathay Windermere Marathon and the inaugural half marathon on Sunday May 22. Visit  https://www.brathay.org.uk/marathon-welcome for entry information. For those with less running experience, the Evening Mail and Brathay have teamed up to provide readers with eight-week 10k and eight-week couch to 5k training programmes.

Visit www.nwemail.co.uk every Thursday to access the latest week’s training schedule, and to seek inspiration from blogs and videos provided by the 10in10 runners. For those who fancy a day out in aid of a wonderful cause, Brathay will also be hosting a family fun day on Sunday May 22, complete with stalls, entertainment and activities as well as junior races for under-eights, under-10s, under-14s and under-17s.