Dear Fell Runner

The reason for me posting to the forum is that the Department of Sport, Coaching and Exercise Science at the University of Lincoln is looking to conduct a range of sport and exercise science research into ultra-endurance running events, particularly those of a multi-stage nature, such as the OMM. This is an area of sport performance which has had little time and expertise devoted to it in the past by sport scientists and the team have a number of research questions which we feel need investigation, particularly as ultra distance running continue to grow in popularity amongst both elite and mainstream athletes. Our focus at the moment is on the physical characteristics of ultra athletes and the physiological demands placed on them by multi-stage events, but it is envisaged that a whole host of questions could be looked at by the team over the next few years.

We are therefore interested in gaining some initial data from ultra-distance athletes such as yourself and, at the outset, our focus is on looking at your physical preparation for the events you take part in, in particular the type of training programmes that you undertake. The aim is for us to compile a database of training programmes, looking at the differences in practice that exist across the range of participants. We would hope, once the data has been analysed, to provide each athlete with guidelines on the 'optimum' training programme for their level of performance and their particular race ambitions.

Our long term view is that the sport science research team will conduct monitoring and evaluation of ultra-distance athletes at various ultra-events and collect a range of data on various physical parameters, such as blood/urine sampling and heart rate monitoring, and relate these to laboratory measurements. Other areas will look to include physical profiling of ultra-runners, the analysis of adaptations to various training programmes and the assessment of tools such as acclimatization work leading into events performed in extreme environments, e.g. the MdS / the Atacama Crossing.

Our ultimate aim is to provide competitors such as yourselves with a greater body of knowledge than currently exists in how to maximise your performance in ultra-events and tailor this to individuals, possibly by working with athletes on a consultancy basis. It is envisaged that we would look to publish our work through a range of media, including scientific periodicals, mainstream books and websites for all competitors to access and utilise as they see fit.

I hope that this sounds of interest to you and that you would like to get involved in our programme of research. If you are indeed interested in taking part and/or would like to know more, could you please reply to the email address at the foot of the post and I will get in touch directly with you asap. Finally, I can ensure you that all data collected during the course of our research will remain anonymous and subject/client confidentiality will be of the utmost importance to us, as we operate within clear ethical guidelines in accordance with the British Association of Sport & Exercise Science.

Many thanks for your time and co-operation.

Paul Murgatroyd

Department of Sport, Coaching & Exercise Science

University of Lincoln

[email protected]