In It for the Long Run: Breaking records and getting FKT

by Damian Hall

In It for the Long Run is ultrarunner Damian Hall ’s story of running a first marathon aged thirty-six, dressed as a toilet, and representing Great Britain four years later. His midlife-crisis running problem escalated to 100-mile ultramarathons and record-breaking bimbles, culminating in his 261-mile Pennine Way run in July 2020. In 1989, Mike Hartley set a record/ Fastest Known Time (FKT) for the Pennine Way, running Britain’s oldest National Trail in two days and seventeen hours, without stopping for sleep. Hartley’s record stood for thirty-one years, until two attempts were made on it in two weeks in the summer of 2020. First, American John Kelly broke Hartley’s record by thirty-four minutes. Then Hall knocked another three hours off Kelly’s time. Hall used his record-bothering run to highlight concerns for our climate and ecological emergency : his attempt was carbon negative , he created no plastic waste, and he and his pacing runners collected litter as they went, while also raising money for Greenpeace. A vegan, Hall used no animal products on his attempt. Scrawled on his arm in permanent marker was ‘F F F’, standing for Family, Friends, Future. Packed with dry wit and humour, In It for the Long Run tells of Hall’s nine-year preparation for his attempt, and of the run itself. He also gives us an autobiographical insight into the deranged, custard-splattered, hedgehog-dodging world of ultramarathon running and record attempts.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, Audiobook, Memoir, Outdoors, Health, Biography

Audible Audio

Published August 9, 2021

About the author

A record-breaking ultramarathon runner who represented Great Britain aged 40 and continues to record competitive results in the world’s toughest races (mostly powered by tea). He’s featured in several films, books and the national media.

Reviews

[Neil S · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not just a book for trail runners, it should appeal to a wide audience; anyone who likes the outdoors, adventure, challenge and extraordinary achievement. This book is far more than an autobiography of a top quality athlete. It crosses many boundaries and even if you've never run or your running days have passed then it is a superb story of determination to succeed, never giving up and just getting out there and taking part.
For the runner this is much more than an A to Z of trail and ultra running, although to get the most out of it in this respect I think you won't just read it once, you'll be dipping back into it for advice as your own running develops.
The book starts with a great introduction and summary of some of the trail/ultra running records and their associated controversies, before moving into Damian's own story. It then continues as a perfect balance of autobiography mingled with history and advice and training/coaching tips. I found it fascinating how Damian selected different coaches for different stages of his running journey including one purely to focus on improving his running technique. It seems few of us can actually walk or run properly! I loved the section where Damian describes what it takes to be a good support crew member or support runner, two exacting roles, the latter not necessarily fulfilled by the best runners. Carefully selecting your support is vital to your run, but be warned you need to return the favour.
After covering a succession of events and record runs the book culminates in Damian's Pennine Way run and the "competition" against a fellow runner, John Kelly, undertaking the challenge within days of Damian.
As I say "In It For the Long Run" is not just for the runner, it is far more. It is a very enjoyable life story with a very human touch. If you liked the book seek out the associated film of Damian's Pennine Way Run "Totally FKT" which premiered at last year's Kendal Mountain Festival. Well worth the watch.

[Bob Jamieson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great! Probably the best running book I've read.

Audiobook narrator is pretty good too.

[Charlie Massey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read a great many running books.

Scanning my little library, it looks like the iconic "The Complete Book of Running" by James E. Fixx was the first. That was in 1984, around about the time I began to "get serious" about my own running.
 
It is actually hard to define what makes a good running book when you are a runner yourself. I tend to be most satisfied by those that seem to connect the world that I live in as a runner to that other world of outstanding, even world class performances, making the superhuman appear more normal. It helps if they are well written and add other dimensions that you hadn't expected. Maybe because running is such a self-absorbing activity where numbers and medals tend to dictate "success", breadth of perspective and literary quality tend to be much more rare than, say, in books written by climbers and mountaineers (the other well-stocked shelf in my library.)

Thankfully, Damian's book is one of the rare ones.

What becomes almost immediately apparent is that Damian is a writer who is describing his journey into becoming a world class runner, rather than a runner attempting to record his "story" in print. Until the last 2 or 3 years, runners who devour the content of running magazines every month will have read his many articles without ever really considering where his running journey began. Nevertheless today in the UK, Damian has become a kind of archetype for the trail running boom, with its focus on setting arcane personal goals, running further and across wilder terrain than we even considered in the 1980's. Unlike most of us, who just play at it by buying the gear and shuffling around on some trails or in the National Parks, Damian has applied himself in middle age to becoming the best he can be. He has made sacrifices and gambled with his career to do this. The book describes his accruals of expertise to help with his running form, his mental preparation and his equipment as well as his absorption of the best from several world-renowned coaches. Early in the book he gives us an insight into the period of his life where he was an inveterate wanderer and world traveller, someone who the 2021 Damian, conscientious father and environmental activist, seems to be slightly ashamed of. The interplay of these two Damians is a fascinating undercurrent to his story.

Damian first came to my notice as a runner in 2016, when he set out on an incredibly audacious attempt to run the entire 630 mile South West Coast Path, clockwise, in less than 11 days. GPS trackers and social media / exercise software such as Strava now allow us to dip into these types of experience vicariously from our armchair, and starting with that success 5 years ago, Damian has since provided pretty good value for we, his "dot watchers". This culminated in 2020 with his magnum opus, the beasting of Mike Hartley's 1989 record for the North - South non-stop running of the Pennine Way. Whilst Hartley's achievement was a typical "you had to be there" event, Damian had thousands of us following him virtually via his "dot" and multiple social media updates in real time.

The book of course focuses on the progression of these record attempts, or Fastest Known Times (FKT's) on UK trails and mountain rounds. It is here where Damian's skills as a writer are most to the fore in bringing us into his head during these long days of suffering, accompanied always by a smattering of self-deprecating gallows humour. 

Damian's other preoccupation, along with many of us flatlanders who yearn for the soaring peaks, has been with the self-styled "World Championship" of ultra trail running, the 105 mile "lap" of the Mont Blanc massif, Ultra Trail de Mont Blanc. His successive attempts culminated in an outstanding 5th place, 2 years ago. We can feel his hunger to better himself and his calculated application of mental skills to achieving another audacious goal.

I would be fairly confident that Damian has far from finished with the "long form", and I look forward to him developing further on his environmental concerns in other work, a subject which he gives lucid attention to here, but his ideas clearly need a bit of brewing time (much like his beloved tea!). Sponsored athletes have an obligation to promote consumption and I am most interested to see how Damian balances this out in the long term. Having this book published as a carbon negative printed book is a damn fine start.

The book came to me when I was mid way through Nirmal Purjah's account of summiting all the world's 8000m peaks in 7 months. I had once again followed the incredible journey via social media and was very keen to read Nimsdai's own account. I made the mistake of deciding to read Damian's first couple of pages while Nimsdai's team were descending K2 in the Karakoram. "In it for the Long Run" proved to flow so well, and be that engaging, that Damian had arrived in Edale before Nimsdai got to the next peak!

Engaging, readable, funny, sometimes surprising and, yes, occasionally inspiring. Well worth a good read.

[Cody · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly loved this. Really fun. Damian has a delightfully informal and British writing style that kind of irked me at first but i soon started to really enjoy it.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like Damian Hall and have always enjoyed his articles, and this book IS good and laugh out loud funny in spots, but it does often get into long stretches of detail about the ins and outs of every race, which slows things down a lot and makes it a bit samey after a while. He also talks about A LOT of ultrarunners, often fleetingly, which makes it all the harder to remember who they are when they pop up again later in the book.

It’s kind of a shame because I do think his story is really interesting but it was often buried under less interesting detail in my opinion.

[Owain Schiavone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hoffi Damian Hall, ac wedi mwynhau clywed mwy o'i hanes...er mod i'n gwbod dipyn yn barod. Ddim y llyfr rhedeg gorau erioed, ond wedi'i ysgrifennu'n ddigon da a'i hiwmor yn dod drosodd. Iawn de

[Vishal · Rating 5 out of 5]

raw inspiration.

[Adrian Trendall · Rating 5 out of 5]

In It For The Long Run is a book I’ve long anticipated reading ever since Vertebrate announced it’s future publication. Suffice it to say the book lived up to my, perhaps impossibly high, expectations and was devoured in almost one long continuous reading.

Not many athletes come to their peak the wrong side of 40 so there’s hope and inspiration for many in Damian’s book. He didn’t run his first marathon until age 36 and even then did it in his own unique style dressed as a toilet. Four years later he was representing the UK and totally obsessed by ultra marathons. Famous races are covered including the Ultra Trail Du Mont Blanc but more interesting to me are the ones like the South West Coastal Path. The statistics of the latter put the book and ultra runs into perspective; 630 miles with 115,00 feet of ascent run in ten days, fifteen hours and some minutes.

The book focusses on his first love, the Penine Way. Not only did Damian write a guide book to it but he’s completed multiple “Spine Races” which are continuous runs in winter and his record breaking run last year. Way back in 1989 Mike Hartley set a record of two days and seventeen hours to cover 268 miles with loads of bog (much since paved over), thousands of feet of ascent, a record which stood for 31 years.

Like buses, 2020 saw two record breaking Penine Way ultra runs. First came American John Kelly who beat the record but only by 43 minutes. With the gauntlet well and truly thrown down, enter Damian who knocked an amazing further three hours off the time.

The book covers the record breaking run in detail but in a context of lots of other record beating runs and a wider context of the camaraderie and support of the ultra running world as record holders virtually queue up to support new record attempts. It’s a book full of acronyms, so many that it makes the recent “Line Of Duty” to have had an inadequacy of spot on acronyms. FKT equals Fastest Known times but adds to the grit and reality of the subtitle of “Breaking Records and getting FKT.”

Interesting questions are raised about aims and motivations, suffering and reward, obsessions and their place in the real world of jobs and family. Damian used his Pennine Way record breaking run to highlight climate change and the ecological crisis fast threatening the world. Perhaps uniquely, Damian’s run was carbon negative and no plastic was used, litter was gathered as he ran, money raised for Greenpeace. Damian used no animal products so as to uphold his vegan lifestyle. Tellingly, he wrote “FFF” on his arm in black marker pen to stand for “Family, Friends, Future.” It’s a thought provoking book covering subjects that certainly would be in a mainstream running book.

It’s an inspiring read of a not so young person striving to be the very best they can. The writing is totally absorbing and not just yet another account by a top sportsperson of another record broken. Rather it charts a late discovery of running and Damian’s obsession and how it fits into his life and the world.

It’s very much a warts and all work of writing with pithy descriptions of suffering, of missing toe nails, halucinations, body and mind closing down as a record beckons. It’s undoubtedly a world of suffering and perhaps one that most people would rather read about than experience and if you want to only read one book about ultra runs then make this the one.

[Elena Nichols · Rating 3 out of 5]

Inspo for my mountain run! Found Damian to be a little self absorbed initially but it was inspiring towards the end 😆

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having followed Damian Hall and other ultra runners’ progress on the various ‘Fastest Known Time’ (FKT) attempts and ‘rounds’ over the summer of 2020, I was looking forward to reading “In it for the Long Run; Breaking Records and getting FKT”. I’d thoroughly enjoyed the book “Broken” by Ally Beaven which covers some similar ground, but didn’t feel any sense of repetition here apart from a few of the details (perhaps helped by reading a couple of different books in-between and having a rubbish memory). Whilst I’m a road runner covering much, much shorter distances, there is something inspirational about the individuals who take on these challenges, and I love reading about the different communities within our wider running family, and especially what sounds like a competitive yet very collaborative group of elite fell, trail and mountain runners all supporting each other with their various adventures.
Hall tells his own running story culminating in his Pennine Way FKT attempt a couple of weeks after his friend John Kelly set a new best time on the same course (running in the opposite direction). As Hall is a journalist, you would of course expect the writing here to be of a certain quality and it doesn’t disappoint; it’s a humorous, honest and absorbing read. Hall views himself as a bit of an underdog, but you can tell that it motivates him to do everything he can to compete with those he views as his heroes. The descriptions of the actual races and FKT attempts in the book give you a sense not only of the varied wild landscapes but also the physical, mental and emotional ups and downs that are part of the experience of these longer, often multi-day events.
I was very interested in the short but compelling section on Hall’s motivation to raise awareness of the ecological crisis that we’re facing. I have been trying to educate myself on the climate emergency and broader such as the impact of plastic waste on biodiversity, and recently read the excellent “Why Rebel” by Jay Griffiths, which makes the case for protest and civil disobedience to encourage political action. This is a theme that Hall carefully picks up in the book, talking about the work of Extinction Rebellion and the growing sentiment shared by many of us who enjoy running in natural spaces that we need to both address sustainability issues in running itself and use the opportunity that running gives us to raise awareness of the urgency of the situation, as Hall did through fundraising for Greenpeace and picking up litter en route on his Pennine Way FKT attempt. As it happens “Why Rebel” was a Twitter recommendation from a fell runner (and author of another running book recommendation - “Run Wild”), Boff Whalley. I’m starting to notice similar topics are emerging in other running books and would love some more recommendations along these lines. The book itself is considered “Carbon Negative” through offsetting by publishers Vertebrate Publishing; although Ziggy, my puppy, still felt the need to improve its green credentials by beginning to shred the signed copy I’d bought for easier recycling...!
Highly recommended - another contemporary classic for your runner’s bookshelf.

[Steve Chilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Damian Hall has been a journalist much of his life and has shown he can research and weave stories, but can he write a book about himself and his move into ultra running? He writes fairly briefly about his upbringing and admits to not having it particularly easy. He also says that on reflection he had ‘a kind of chronic outsider syndrome’. Rejecting team sports, which he did not excel at, he took to running, eventually entering a half marathon. This was something of a lifechanger and the rest of the book details his descent (or ascent, depends on how you look at it) into off-road trail/ultra running. When he realised he needed coaching advice he seemed not to be able to settle on a suitable coaching arrangement (working with several different coaches and going solo sometimes). Eventually he became a coach himself, as he moved towards supporting himself (and his family) by coaching and with sponsorship (seemingly reluctantly). Having described his obsession with the UTMB, several record ’rounds’ he achieved (including solo/unsupported ones), and some ‘fastest known times’ on long-distance challenges (I do not like the acronym FKT), he gradually became edgier as he moved to the climax of his ultra career (so far) and describes the build-up and execution of his record for traversing the Pennine Way (beating friend John Kelly’s record set just 8 days previously). He displays a fine turn of phrase in highlighting the highs and lows of that effort, with some good banter about, and with, his top quality support crew. So, to answer my initial question, he DID write well about himself. It is a fascinating read if you are remotely interested in ultras, being in the ‘lumps’ he so loves, running itself, and also how you can do all this and try to contribute less to climate change by making some life choice changes. As a tribute to the author I have included as many explanations in brackets as I can (where possible), as I have never seen so many in one book, and am pretty sure my editor wouldn’t have allowed them (all).

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's a moment about halfway through Damian Hall's memoir where he's reminiscing about a record-smashing eleven days and he recalls a statement that "There's something wrong with us. We're hurting ourselves. And we're hurting ourselves because we enjoy it." If you wanted to describe this book in three short sentences, I can't think of a better way of summing up its contents.

Whether it's Hall's early experiences of half- and full-marathons, his first steps in the world of trail and ultra-running through to the big set pieces of the book on the Alpine course of the UTMB, the fells of the Lake District or Snowdownia or the long distance Pennine Way he's out there pushing his body to extremes and largely enjoying it, at least on reflection.

But those three short sentences also encapsulate a deeper message in the book too. Hall is deeply affected by climate change and his reflections on the nature of racing in a world of flights versus carbon offset and sponsorship versus ethics are important considerations for the future of long-distance running in, as he puts it, "lumpy places."

Well worth a read if you have any interest in distance running of any variety, and in particular off-road. Also worth a read if you have any interest in just being outside and enjoying a journey or to see how one-top level sportsperson is weighing the future of their career and sport against the future of the planet.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.

[Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is much more than the story of Damian Hall's running - epic though that is. Whereas Ally Beaven's Broken told the story of amazing running exploits in 2020, In It For The Long Run tells what I found a more interesting story of the authors development as a runner from first steps to serial 'record botherer' all leading up to his Pennine Way record in 2020. Although Hall is now very well known as an ultra runner his journey to get there will be less so. It's a great story of following his passion initially as a journalist but gradually learning as a runner and eventually making the step to become a professional runner. This is all very interesting but sometimes his professionalism and attention to details is slightly obscured by his quirky brand of humour. Some will find his narrative of 'bimbles', 'lumpy runs' and being 'not a fellrunner' endearing, some a bit annoying - I'm the latter but it didn't stop me enjoying this book hugely.
What I didn't expect and enjoyed the most was the breadth and insight into many other runners, and support crew, which adds a lot to the story. Lastly I was really pleased to read Hall's outspoken campaigning for the planet. Runners are probably no different to the general public in just getting on with life and maybe not thinking about this stuff but if this makes them stop and think then in my view that's a very good thing.
In summary, very enjoyable, humorous (maybe), fascinating and well done Damian for telling it like it is when it comes to looking at ourselves in relation to climate change.
I'd recommend it to anyone.

[Craig Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Damian Hall has gone on an incredible journey from pretty decent amateur runner and writer to full time record breaking, ultra winning pro and fan favourite.

This book is a very entertaining read probably thanks to his former day job. After a brief section on his early life we are taken through Damian’s improbable ultra running journey as he recounts with plenty of detail and fun anecdotes the races that have launched his ultra running career and of course his many FKT attempts.

He’s very honest about the ups (lemon drizzle cake) and downs (hedgehogs) of this insane sport and really paints the community in a bright light showing a great deal of humbleness and generosity.

He’s made a lot of amazing friends who have helped him on his journey and likewise he’s been there for them and it’s great to hear such heartwarming stories of the common simple joy of running uniting people around the globe.

I really enjoyed the inclusion of a “soap box” section where Damian goes into his views on veganism and environmentalism. Some of the stats I’d not heard before and although I’m already on board I think the evidence is shocking and I really appreciate the lengths that both Damian and sponsor Innov8 are going to.

The end of the book has a really cool section where Damian includes thoughts from his friends and ultra running peers on what it means to them to tackle FKTs (Fastest Known Times), which includes some really interesting quotes.

I’d recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading running books.

[Mathew Bourne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having run a few fell races and lover of the outdoors, I can appreciate the sadistic feeling that long distance running brings to certain people. Reading Damian Hall’s quest for a fastest Known Time (FKT) along the Pennine Way, we delve inside his thoughts and his personality as he builds up towards the epic run. If those of you have followed his little ‘bimble’ across the backbone of England, you get the real brutal honesty of what it is like to push the body as far as it can go and Damian, then for good measure, pushes it that little bit further.
You don’t have to be into fell running to appreciate the rawness and humility that comes through in Damian’s writing, just enjoy the journey he takes from an early running career that he happened to stumble across. The journey takes you to parts of Britain and beyond that you want to go and visit and follow in his footsteps, but it also tells you of his opportunity to make a difference to the beauty of the landscape that you walk upon.
You have to appreciate the insanity and perceived satisfaction of his epic adventures and not think I can’t do it, reading this might just give you the motivation to show that you can do it, as well as enjoying a few laughs and appreciating nods along the way.

[Sarah Laing · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book as it was full of inspirational moments and an amazing team of people who help each other as a result of a common passion. I loved reading about all the different challenges the people within the book put themselves up against. They took a lot of determination, motivation and desire to finish them. Human bodies are amazing feats of engineering and these challenges display this very well.
If you like inspirational books that will inspire you to start your next challenge, whatever it may be or if you like to read about someone's passion or the amazing people in the world who will go out their way to help friends or strangers or love running this is the book for you. A highly recommended book.

[Nelson Liddle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brilliant insight into the world of elite ultra-running. But it is much more than that. It tells Damian Hall's story of beginning to run and then taking it to the most unimaginable extremes of effort, endurance and excellence. Some great commentary and thinking points around our natural world - the space these ultras are run in - and humanity's responsibility for it's care and our collective carelessness. So, it's not all about the detail and the dirt of running - it has a welcome deeper commentary that only adds to the scope of the book.
Paraphrasing the common-thread mantra ("It never always gets worse"): it never always is about the running; there's the challenge, the humanity and the responsibility. All three make this a cracking read.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having followed all the many 2020 FKT attempts online, I had been excitedly anticipating this book. It’s a great read, giving an insight into the author’s motivations and his progression from amateur to ultrarunning record-holder. I especially enjoyed the insights into why people do the “long lumpy stuff”. The fellrunning and ultrarunning communities are both relatively small ones so it was also nice to see lots of names cropping up in there of people I know, or people who have helped with other record attempts too. A very inspiring read - makes me want to get out into the hills even more.

[Andy Parkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who didn't get into running properly until their mid 30s I've always been fascinated by Damian's story
Having also heard him interviewed several times this is written in such a way that it does a great job of reflecting his personality and sense of humour

I still can't get my hand around the distances he and many of the other people he talks about in the book regularly run!

I really enjoyed this and it covers all the big races and records he's set. Perfect for anyone with even the slight interest in running or endurance sport

[Anne Macnamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read previous books by Damian and his articles, I had to pre-order a copy - and was not disappointed. A great mix of autobiography, history of ultra running and pushing yourself, I loved the friendship and mutual support that shines out from Damian’s challenges. You don’t know what you are capable of until you try, and this is a wonderful book about trying things you didn’t know you could do.

[Reg Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

The good bits are definitely 4* - reflections on why, descriptions of the runs, consideration of wider issues like the environment. The not-so-good-bits - name dropping, product placements, sponsorship mentions - should drop the rating, but I can just about forgive them, even though they nearly made me give up reading after the first few chapters. But just like a long run, it was worth pushing quickly past those bits to reach the end.

[Mark Eddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

An inspiring read that grabs your attention right from the start.
Damian tells how he stumbled into the world of Ultra and fell running, to quickly become one of the biggest names around. Talks about his goals and dreams, the adventures had along the way. His story is full of enthusiasm, honesty and wit, and quickly tempts you to be out in the mountains and fells doing the same.

[Lucian Stănescu · Rating 5 out of 5]

interesting, thoughtful, funny, well written... just as I expected.

I just wished for a bit more details on the less glamorous parts: the daily training. the early hours, the hard days, the motivation to go out again and again, the various problems.

other than that I of course envy Damian for finding out he is so good at something :) keep up the fun, run on!

[Paul Hiom · Rating 5 out of 5]

such a pleasure to read.

Self deprecating, inspiring, entertaining work. The author doesn’t take himself too seriously, clearly loves and cherishes the community support he receives and tells an excellent story about their journey as an athlete. I’m already scouting for my own personal Pennine Way!!

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very funny, lots of anecdotes about consuming vast amounts of custard in ‘lumpy places’, as Damian coins and, and an all round great story of just how much you can push body and mind. If you’re interested in running, endurance sports or adventure then I strongly recommend it.

[Stuart Sellers · Rating 4 out of 5]

He's done some extraordinary things and this is a great and funny account, with some activism sprinkled in too.

[Bookhounds · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that inspires you to think that the best is yet to come. Our team has all come up with their own adventures after reading Damian's story.

[Dylan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best running books I've read... I really enjoyed it, and will recommend it to anyone

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book, couldn't put it down!

[T Michaelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved listening to this