** UPDATE**
Ellis smashed it! From last Thursday & across the weekend he took part in 4 consecutive running events, over 30 miles across some varied terrain. The prime goal was raising funds for the Tameside, Oldham and Glossop MIND charity but he picked up some snazzy medals too!
He says: "It was a good four days, although it could've done with being a bit cooler on some of them! It was more achievable than I thought it was going to be, because it's broken down into four days and you get some rest in between. I thought it might've taken more of a toll than it did. I'm really pleased."
Ellis finished in the top 125 of all events among the 500 runners who competed in each race, with a further 100-150 taking part in individual events.
He finished the 10k in 48 mins 55 secs and the fell run in 52:22. He then clocked 2:04:39 in the half marathon before finishing the 7-mile finale in 53:17, which included a personal best time for 10k.
He says: "I hit a massive wall on the half marathon. I didn't fuel up properly after the fell run. I always said that was going to be difficult one because of the tough fell run going on to the half marathon. It was a bit if a run-walk, run-walk pace, I know I could've done better, but I got through it and that was the main thing.
"If the worst bit was hitting the wall in the half marathon, the best bit was running down the hill on Market Street in Hyde to the finishing line on the last day, knowing that I'd done it; and because I'd had such a good run on that day it picked my spirits up again after the disappointment of the day before."
Well done to Ellis for completing the Tour of Tameside event & raising funds for such a worthy cause!
****************************************************
Regular runner Ellis Smith is taking on the 33.3-mile Tour of Tameside challenge to raise money for the mental health charity Mind - a cause close to his heart.
Ellis, who is Production Planning Administrator at our Oldham base, has battled depression in the past, and still suffers occasionally from it.
He says: "I've had trouble in the past with my mental health so I'm hoping that by running for MIND I'll be helping other people who have struggled as well, to show that you can come out the other side.
"My depression was a few years ago now, but I can have bouts from time to time - it never fully goes away."
Ellis, who has set a fundraising target of £400, is drumming up sponsorship from his colleagues and family members for the four-day running festival, which starts on 16th June.
It means he'll begin with a 10km (6.1mile) trail run on various terrains across two country parks, followed by a 6-mile fell run. It's then onto a 13.1-mile half marathon, which includes a stretch of the Longdendale Trail, before the 7-mile road race finale named in memory of Dr Ron Hill, the Hyde-based marathon legend who founded the tour in 1981.
"I think the hardest event is going to be the half marathon the day after the hill run, just due to the fatigue," adds Ellis. "It's Day Three and such a long distance but it's amazing what you can do when you push yourself."
Ellis, who's worked at HPP for eight years, runs a minimum three times a week, covering at least 15 miles - a fitness regime that stems from his four years in the Royal Engineers.
And when the tour comes around, he'll be cheered on by his fiancé Adele and their three children, Devon (13), Blake (8) and Willow (4).
He's now stepped up his training in readiness for the tour and took part in the Great Manchester Run half marathon where he was joined by our Marketing and Business Development Director Dan Mounsey - who last year completed a 50k (30-mile) endurance run for Mind. Both men clocked a very respectable 1hr 43 mins - placing them in the early 900s of 8,000 participants.
Ellis, who lives in Fitton Hill, Oldham, adds: "I've done 13-mile runs in training, but I've never done an organised event like this before. It was brilliant, the atmosphere was amazing. You see a huge range of runners and fitness levels."
Good luck Ellis, from everyone at HPP!