Downhill From Here: Running From John O'Groats to Land's End

by Gavin Boyter

Approaching his middle forties, Gavin Boyter wondered what his life was all about. A Scot living in London, single and with no kids, he was living for the job and the dwindling hope of a career in film. He had been a club runner all his life, pretty good but not at the front all that often. He was what he called an ordinary runner and he came to wonder just what an ordinary runner might be capable of. How about John O'Groats to Land's End, the longest linear run in Britain, and how about making a film of it? And how about writing a book? As usual, Gavin was neither the first nor the quickest but Downhill from Here is his real triumph, written in such an engaging and witty voice the reader accompanies him every step of the way.

Genres: Nonfiction

348 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 20, 2017

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was asked to review this by Nudge

Sport has come into our lives more and more three brits have won great cycling races, we love the London 2012 Olympics and for me more so the Paralympics. Gavin asked the question what would an ordinary runner achieve - and just what did he achieve - a run from John O'Groats to Land's End- the sort of challenge that you see on Sports Relief - and at the start the viewer thinks no, and at the start of this story the reader may say no this cannot be achieved.

Not only was I there in paper form rooting for him, and feeling like I was on this endurance too, but I like the guy a lot too.

The reader goes on the journey too, it was never going to be easy, there would be a lot of pain a long the way, you learn about Gavin the person, Scottish living in London, the author diaries this and there is part travelogue too - which makes this interesting a long the way. We all go through times when we need to discover yourself and this is all part of Gavin's journey. This is an extremely honest account.

I was so rooting for Gavin and found myself getting excited as he nears the end and finally fulfils this challenge.

Although some reviewers state this is great for runners, I would say anyone interested in sport and the reader will learn so much about this challenge and may spur them on to fulfil a challenge of their own be it sport or not.

Well worth the read, thank you to Nudge for letting me review and thank you to the publishers Sandstone Press for sending this for me to read.

Just found out this is being made into a film also.

[Nicholas Salmon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book grew on me and I ended up enjoying the read and the journey down through Scotland and
England with the author. To begin with, I have to confess I found him slightly annoying as he was a
truly incompetent map-reader and hadn’t thought to carry a battery charger for his mobile phone, so
would lose that as both a navigation tool and as a way of contacting his support team in the
afternoons. But he did address those initial weaknesses and remained committed to trying to stay off-
road as much as possible. His journey and the challenges then soon began to make a really
interesting read. Part of the narrative covered efforts by him and his support team to try to film the run
for later release, but I think that never came to fruition.

[Bernie Critchley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book does a great job of giving you an insight into what it’s like to undertake a challenge of the scale of running the length of the country! You get to understand how difficult it is, what’s involved, what can go wrong, and how resilient you need to be to keep going! It’s also a good read and the author comes across as a likeable character who you’re rooting for. However, it did drag at points, and I felt that it could be shorter and more concise. But then again that might be one of the reasons it does such a good job of giving you an understanding of what it was like running day after day, it’s going to be monotonous at times and things are going to feel repetitive.

[Sara Lodge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny, painful and truthful, this is a rare book by an ultrarunner in that the author is really and truly a writer - an unusual combination of traits. There is some lovely landscape description here and a lot of viscerally real weather. I groaned when he got lost and had to swim a Highland river in the dark, winced when he was nearly hit by cars in the Cotswolds, and rejoiced when he finally made it to his destination. A sweaty-sock mid-life crisis cum odyssey, and a triumph of endorphins and gritty determination over despair, catalogued with honesty and humour.

[Tom Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a cracking story of just what extraordinary things can be achieved by ordinary human beings.

Although at times it can feel a little bit long, this book takes you on a journey the length of the UK. The excitement that builds through the last few chapters is infectious - really gripping stuff.

Gavin Boyter's absolute honesty and open nature make it easy to root for him as you follow his adventures. And I'm left with the sense that he's probably an incredibly nice bloke.

[Hugh Eagle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve just finished Gavin’s book using Kindle. On every page I was kept abreast of the percentage of the book I had left to read as well as the decreasing amount of time it would take me to read it. As it decreased alongside the length of the run Gavin had left to complete I could feel real excitement mounting, and because of his gripping style of writing, real trepidation! I’m exhausted!

[Hannah Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable. Some editing mistakes, which are frustrating, but not a huge deal. I read this while completing a virtual LEJOG challenge (the opposite direction of Boyter's) to help immerse and inspire myself. The writing could have brought each of the places he saw to life a bit more, but then there's only so much you can say about running. It was a pleasant diversion.

[Stuart Sellers · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well written account and really interesting to read about the country changing during the long journey south. The book does become a little repetitive after a while, but I guess that is the nature of running for day after day.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and inspiring book for runners