This was my first big adventure. I had been working in the City (London) for 12 years in a good job but one that did not fulfil me in any way. The more I resented my job, the more my life started to become unhappy. I realised I needed to make some changes and Running the Americas was that adventure.

I started in Vancouver, Canada, and ran 17,000km to Buenos Aires, Argentina. The route took me through Canada, USA, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, Chile and Argentina. To finish, I fly into Heathrow Terminal 5 and race to Parliament Square picking up runners along the way.

This was a solo & unsupported adventure so everything I needed had to be pushed in a Thule Cheetah baby stroller. This included all my camping gear, cooker, food, water, clothes, shoes etc. The weight of the stroller varied depending on where I was but ranged from about 30kg to 50kg.

There were a number of huge obstacles and challenges along the route and this included:

  • Hitch Hiking across the Sea of Cortez
  • Navigating my way around the Darien Gap
  • Crossing the Andes in Ecuador (3800m)
  • Crossing the Sechura Desert in northern Peru
  • Crossing the Atacama Desert in northern Chile
  • Crossing the Andes (again) between Chile and Argentina (4830m)

The stats for this adventure are:

  • Total Distance – 17,000km
  • Total Running Days – 367
  • Number of Shoes – 17
  • Average distance/day – 46.5
  • Longest day – 79km
  • Highest altitude – 4830m
  • Longest continuous stage – 28 days & 1575km (Argentina)