Sarah’s eight-day ultra-marathon across the Scottish Highlands

We have been celebrating an out-of-office win for two of our team who, last month, completed an ultra-marathon across the remote Scottish Highlands. After our Director of Operations, Sarah Towers, and Programme Director, Allan Gordon, took on the grueling challenge we checked in with Sarah to find out more about the experience, from the early stages of signing up, through to pushing herself to complete the eight-day challenge.

Sarah:

“It’s no secret that I’m always looking for my next challenge, and this had been on my radar for a while. Having completed other events like the Marathon des Sables, this felt like the way to push myself that step further in 2025.

“The Scottish Highlands also hold sentimental meaning for me as it’s where I completed my Duke of Edinburgh Gold expedition thirty-five years ago. My uncle also re-located there when I was young and always spoke fondly about his time there – I always felt a connection to the Scottish Highlands and this made the challenge that bit more special.”

Sarah:

“There were so many things to consider when preparing and, similar to other ultramarathons, spreadsheets were ultimately my best friend! There was lots to consider, but planning my meals and the calories I’d need to keep me going, and preparing kit to be ready for unpredictable British weather were key for this particular one. I can safely say it was, as we’d say in the office, a logistical nightmare! We ended up with unexpected high temperatures for 6 of the 8 days, it made each step even more challenging – but also made our surroundings look even more beautiful.”

Sarah:

“To be competitive in the event, you were required to reach checkpoints each day in designated times. One of the days, I wasn’t able to hit my checkpoint, the terrain was extremely rocky, with particularly steep descents and valleys with drop-offs which really slowed my pace. Convincing myself to push forward in this moment was probably my biggest challenge, both physically and mentally.

“This actually ended up leading to a highlight for me, as Allan also didn’t hit this checkpoint on the same day, so we actually got to spend time together finishing the routes. We were able to take it a bit easier on the last couple of days without the rush of meeting checkpoints, instead taking in our surroundings and being present”.

“Another highlight was seeing such remote, beautiful landscapes. On day four, we went through the area where I did my Duke of Edinburgh expedition, and I took a photograph at the exact point that I had taken one thirty-five years before. The race ended up finishing in the village where my uncle lived, which was another lovely way to re-connect with what first drew me to signing up. I also had the chance to meet so many like-minded people from diverse backgrounds who were all supporting each other along the way.

“Through the peaks and troughs – both literally and figuratively – I’m so glad to have experienced this and pushed myself through to the end. It’s always interesting to see how many parallels there are between this and my professional experiences, with organisation, preparation, teamwork and collaboration being such crucial parts of reaching the finish line, as is the case in any successful change project. While I’m currently taking a breather as I recover and reflect on my time in the Scottish Highlands, I am already on the look-out for my next big challenge to take on…”

Read more about Sarah and her role at Entec Si here.