ENZUMO'S OWN MARATHON MAN: JAMES BLANTON
Did you know that James Blanton, National Account Manager from Enzumo, is a Backyard Ultra Marathon runner?
James has been running ultra marathons for over 8 years and has recently started competing in the Backyard Ultra format. Competitors consecutively run a course loop of 6.7056 kilometres or 4.167 miles every hour, day and night, until they can run no more. Once the 2nd last person drops, the remaining runner needs to complete one more loop, to finish the race, becoming the last person standing. All the other competitors receive a DNF (did not finish) result.
In backyard ultra marathons each loop (called a yard) starts precisely one hour after the last. The faster you run the yard, the more rest time you have in-between, the slower you run, the less rest time, and if you don’t complete the yard within the hour, you’re out.
In one of his recent races in Brisbane, James ran for 60 hours, and that qualified him for the Backyard Ultra Individual World Championship in Tennessee, competing for the title of last person standing on earth.
Starting on October 21, 2023, James and 74 other athletes, from 38 Countries, began the run.
This time, James ran for 72 hours, completing 300 miles, or 482km, placing him 23rd of the 75 runners.
His fastest loop was 42.51 minutes, giving him a rest time of 17.09 minutes, but also ran slower times where the shortest rest in between laps was as quick as 4 minutes and 17 seconds, before he had to get back on the course again.
During the break time, James has a process with his crew to use the time optimally to refuel, sleep, change clothes/gear, and meditation also plays a key role. During the race James says there is a community feeling between the runners which is inevitable when you are sharing in the suffering. You want the others to succeed, but on the competitive side you also want them to drop out! There is an element of survivor guilt when people do drop out though, and it affects the remaining runners, you miss them, and lose some of the group energy. But then there is the pitstop every hour, the warning whistles blow at 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 1 minute, and you start again. It’s a relentless battle against time and sheer will to survive.
James withdrew after 72 hours because of severe blisters on both feet and swelling and pain in his left ankle. Following a visit to a nearby medical center for an X-ray, there was a suspicion of a fracture, leading to the use of a moon boot and crutches. The diagnosis was later downgraded to an inflamed tendon, but complications arose when James developed deep vein thrombosis (DVT) from the long-haul flight back home. Currently undergoing rehabilitation with a physiotherapist, he has only recently regained the ability to walk properly - but is already back on his bike. It's a reminder of the challenges that come with pushing oneself to the limits!
You would think after all this one might say ‘no more’, but not James, he has already registered for his next race at Dead Cow Gully, Nanango QLD next May, and will be representing Team Australia at the Backyard National Team Championships in Perth in October 2024!
While we admire James’ dedication, and wish him luck with learning to walk again, and with his next race, we do question his sanity! 😊