A WOMAN who is preparing to run 56 miles in 12 hours has spoken out about her battle with depression as she stood on the verge of committing suicide. 

Penny Moreton is heading to South Africa in May to take on the gruelling task of running a mega ultramarathon in the hopes of raising money for the Brathay Trust. 

Ms Moreton, 57, has more than 60 marathons under her belt and fell into running after moving to Millom following a terrifying illness. 

She said: "I had severe depression. I thought I would end it or it would end me. 

"There have been a few times in my life I nearly did kill myself.

"I was sat in my car on the train tracks because I knew a train was coming, but I couldn't undo the seat belt. 

"Somewhere in my psyche someone was telling me that it wasn't my time to go.

"I've just turned everything around."

Determined to live every second to the full, the Tesco employee soon fell in love with running and joined clubs in Millom and Ulverston. 

She soon began to push her boundaries, running marathons and ultramarathons and raising more than £20,000 for charities. 


One of her highlights was the 10 in 10 challenge which saw her run 10 marathons in 10 days for the Brathay Trust. 

She said: "In 2007 the Brathay Marathon started again and there was about 12 women in the Harriers who wanted to do it. 

"I was ill and couldn't run but went along to take pictures and saw a t-shirt saying 10 marathons in 10 days - I thought they were mad!

"Next year I was better and entered the Brathay and saw them again.

"I approached Brathay and said I wanted to do it and had an absolute blast.

"I raised £7,000 and had a whale of a time."

Having worked in youth social care for a number of years, the Brathay Trust holds a special place in Penny's heart and she is delighted to run her next challenge to raise money for the work it does. 

She said: "I came across so many problems with young people and I just wanted to help. 

"When I discovered what the Brathay Trust did I thought it was awesome. 

"I just thought I have just got to run for them because that's where my heart was before I became a checkout girl."

Ms Moreton will travel to South Africa at the end of May to take on the Comrade Challenge which requires people to run an exceptionally hilly track of 56 miles in 12 hours.

She said: "I'm scared but it's a nice scared - I'm excited. 

"I've never been to South Africa and I'm going to treat myself while I'm there. 

"I'm staying at the Durban Hilton and going on a three-day bush safari."

Ms Moreton is eagerly awaiting the next chapter of her story and is fuelled on by positivity and an overwhelming sense of conquering her demons. 

She said: "I've just turned my life around so much. To be where I was and where I am now - I just wish my mum and dad were still here to see it. 

"My brother was there at the 10 in 10 and he gave me my tenth medal and that was priceless."

Comrades Factfile

  • THE Comrades Marathon is renowned for being the world's oldest and largest ultra event in the world. 
  • It was established in 1921 by World War One veteran, Vic Clapham, who wanted to commemorate the sacrifices made by his comrades in the war. 
  • The event started with just 34 runners racing 56 miles from Pietermaritzburg to Durban and has grown throughout the years to be one of the biggest races in the field. 
  • This year, 20,000 runners from across the world will be making their way to South Africa to take part in the competition. 
  • Men and women must qualify to take part in the race by proving they are able to complete a marathon in less than five hours. 
  • The race has been run every year since 1921 with the exception of the Second World War. 
  • Race day temperature range from 26 to 34 degrees centigrade.
  •  All finishers receive a medal and there are six classes; a gold medal for the first ten men/women finishers, and different medals according to finish times, the final one being the Vic Clapham medal if a runner finishers between 11 and 12 hours. 
  • There is a wall of honour commemorating past competitors overlooking the Valley of a Thousand Hills, built with bricks bought by the runners.