Thames Trail Ultra

The Thames Trail Ultra, a 75.6 km trail ultra, sets off from Henley-on-Thames, in the United Kingdom, at 8.15am on 24 October 2026. The single race has a stated elevation gain of just 289 metres.

That very flat profile defines the nature of the effort: with no hills to force changes of rhythm or walking breaks, your stride stays the same for hours, loading the same muscles over and over and producing a deeper, duller fatigue than in the mountains. Training should therefore favour long runs on runnable ground rather than climbing, with at least two outings of more than four hours in the six weeks beforehand. The upside is encouraging: a flat 75 km ultra is within reach of a regular marathon runner willing to run slowly. Plan your timings carefully, as the morning start leaves a good part of the day ahead of you.