Martin Schneekloth of Huntsville completed the 66-mile Bob Graham Round ultra challenge in less than 24 hours, a feat he calls “one of my most cherished experiences.”
Schneekloth finished in 23 hours 53 minutes the weekend of July 16-18 at Lake District National Park in England. That’s in Cumbria in northwest England, about 3.5 hours from London by train. The Bob Graham Round is a fell running challenge in the District. It is named after Bob Graham (1889–1966), a hotelier in Cumberland who at age 42 first completed the circuit. Fell running, or hill running, is running and racing, off-road, over upland country where the gradient climbed is a significant component of the difficulty. The name arises from the origins of the English sport on the fells of northern Britain, especially those in the Lake District.
The route is 66 miles, with more than 27,000 feet and 42 of the highest peaks in the district. Those who complete it in less than 24 hours may register their attempt to be formally recognized.
Cutting it Close
Schneekloth posted his results and quick thoughts on Facebook after completion:
“Mission accomplished! Yesterday, I completed my toughest ultra challenge to date, the Bob Graham Round in the Lake District National Park in England, UK. Runners must summit 42 peaks and climb 27,000 agonizing feet to complete the 66 mile loop in under 24 hours to be invited as a member of the Bob Graham 24 Hour Club. I managed to squeeze in just under 24 hours with 7 minutes to spare. This will be one of my most cherished experiences as an ultra runner ever.
“Nearly 20 local fell runners followed the call of my friend @coursollycours to provide support crew, pacers and navigators to help me accomplish this goal. This terrain is unlike anything I’d ever encountered anywhere else in the world. Being off trail taking direct lines to the summits for the entire loop means the steepness of grades are unlike anything you would encounter in an actual race (unless you’re a fell runner in the UK 🙂 I will never be able to thank all of these guys enough to show my appreciation, but this memory will be with me forever.”
Schneekloth completed the Tahoe 200 recently. He is an ambassador for Altra, Spring energy, Nuun, UltrAspire and CEP. He logs his reports at Ultra Kraut Running.
Schneekloth is in the blue kit in the photo below, with friends who paced and crewed him.
