N1 Tri Club age group stalwart, Rich Coleman, headed to Switzerland to take part in the Matterhorn Ultra, writes Ellie Dominey.

This running race, staged over a distance of 30 miles and involving over 12,000 feet of climbing over technical terrain, took place in the shadow of the iconic Alpine peak.

Rich was grateful to have packed running poles to enable him to stay upright on the tricky descents, but he reports feeling a dizzying feeling when struggling to haul himself up some eye-wateringly steep climbs, only to see the elite athletes up above effortlessly running up the sheer mountain face!

Rich’s own achievement though should not be underestimated: a finish time of nine hours for 275th place, in challenging and hot conditions, is reason in itself to be proud.