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Vegan runner Damian Hall has won this year’s Montane Lakeland 100, one of the hardest and most-celebrated ultra-distance events in the UK.
This year was Hall’s first time competing in the race, which takes in some of the most famous fells and valleys in the UK’s Lake District. Hall, an accomplished ultra runner, finished in 19 hours, 33 minutes, and 33 seconds, with an average pace of just over 11 minutes per mile. Hall is 49 years old and has been running since his mid-30s.
Read more: ‘What I Eat After Running 50km As A Vegan’
The Lakeland 100 route is more than 105 miles long (nearly 170km) and includes over 6,500 meters of elevation gain. It has a roughly 40-50 percent drop-out rate, and just 460 runners finished this year’s race out of 721. Hall won by just over 30 minutes.
When asked about the experience, Hall told Plant Based News (PBN), “I’m really chuffed with that. At 49, I cherish the fact I’m still able to be competitive at the UK’s premier ultramarathons. Worked hard for it. But what a cracking event.”
In 2020, Hall set a new fastest-known time (FKT) for the Pennine Way, which runs north from Derbyshire up to just past the Scottish border. He completed the 268-mile (431km) route in 61 hours and 34 minutes, beating the previous record by over three hours. While running, Hall and his team litter-picked rubbish and raised more than £4,000 for Greenpeace. He also tried to make the attempt as sustainable as possible.
Read more: Plant-Based Meat Cuts Environmental Impact by 89%, Study Finds
Vegan runners and plant-based sport
In addition to his competitive running career, Hall is a running coach and a co-founder of The Green Runners CIC. He authored 2021’s In It For the Long Run and 2022’s We Can’t Run Away From This, and writes a column for Runner’s World.
In May, vegan track runner Andreas Vojta came second in this year’s Wings For Life World Run by covering just over 42 miles (68.54km) in four hours and nine minutes. The race has an unusual format in which participants run until they are “caught.”
Bob Yates – a vegan runner from England – completed RUN BRITANNIA last month, which took him from Land’s End in western Cornwall to John o’ Groats in north-eastern Scotland. He participated in the 1,000-mile run to celebrate his 60th birthday.
