Sarah Milne admits her victory in the John Lucas Memorial 46 mile race at Strathaven was just a warm-up for a bigger test next month.
The 27-year-old Aberdeen athlete showed real grit and determination to win the women’s division of the Lanarkshire event in a fine time of 7hr 33min 53secs. She finished 17mins ahead of the next woman and was beaten by only five men.
Now Milne is focussed on what will be the longest race she has attempted since catching the bug for ultra-distance running a couple of years ago.
She is to tackle the Glenmore 24 hours race near Aviemore in which her goal is to complete at least 100 miles within the allotted time.
Milne said: “I only found out about the John Lucas race six weeks ago and I didn’t sign up seven days beforehand.
“It’s only the second race I’ve been able to do since finishing second in the Dee 33 in March 2019.
“I ran in the Strathearn marathon at the beginning of June but it didn’t go too well and my time was 3:40:53. It was one to forget. I’m not good in the heat and the combination of a tough hilly course and a warm day made it very hard for me.
“Thankfully the conditions at the John Lucas race were ideal. I just decided to go for it to see what would happen.
“I was leading the women’s side of it from early on but I wasn’t really thinking too much about that. My aim was to finish in one piece and to enjoy it – as far as it’s possible to enjoy a 46 mile race.
“I seem to have recovered quite quickly from it and it has given my confidence a boost.”
Milne’s plans for 2020 were blown out of the water by the pandemic and she admits it has taken her some time to get back into the groove.
She said: “I had a bit of a niggle after the Dee 33 race and was out for about six weeks. Once I got back I found it difficult to find the motivation to go out for long runs when there were no races coming along.
“So it’s great to see things beginning to open up again with more races coming along.”
A whole new ball game
Milne’s main target for the year has always been the Glenmore 24 and she’s excited by the test which lies ahead.
She has some previous experience of the event, having competed in the 12-hour race two years ago when she completed 60 miles and finished second woman and eighth overall.
Stepping up to the 24 hours contest is a whole new ball game but Milne is confident of facing up to the challenge.
She said: “I feel more confident following my John Lucas run and I feel I’m capable of reaching 100 miles which would be quite an achievement.
“It’s not just about the training, it’s also about getting the nutrition right. I’ve taken advice from a lot of ultra runners about this but it seems to be a bit of trial and error. What works for one person doesn’t for another. So, I hope I get it right.
“My plan is to keep going throughout the 24 hours. Some people stop for a one hour sleep, but I don’t think I could do that. I’d probably waken up and be confused about where I am.
“We will be running on a four-mile trail loop which has a long uphill and downhill section. That’s good because it will break things up a bit rather than running on the flat all the time.
“Obviously some of the run will be in the dark, so over the next few weeks I plan to get up early a few times to run for an hour or so with a headtorch, just to get accustomed to it.”
Milne is also keen to put in a decent road marathon performance in the not too distant future, but much will depend on how quickly she recovers from Glenmore.
She said: “I’ve thought about the Manchester marathon in October, but it might come too soon after the 24 hour race. I’ll see how I feel nearer the time.”
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