2015

Iconic PARIS BREST PARIS cycle event completed. 760 miles non-stop in 89 hours 12 mins.

Completed first marathon in 4 years after knee, hip and hernia problems.

5 marathons completed this year

2013

Cycled John O Groats to Lands End in the ride across Britain event (www.rideacrossbritain.com) The route was 980 miles, in 9 days. I think I am the only person to have officially ran AND cycled JOGLE.

Started COCKBAIN EVENTS LTD (www.cockbainevents.com) A series of extremely difficult UK based ultras.

2012

No running. Right knee has torn meniscus and OA issues. Visited many knee specialists over the last 18 months. Tried stem cell treatment in the USA, but to no avail. I can run short distances. I have started road cycling. Ultra running is on hold for the forseable future.

2011

Worst running year yet. Was training for TRANS USA but got severe tendonitis in both feet and didnt go to the race. Now diagnosed with osteoarthritis of my right knee. My running future is in the balance.

Created my own ultra race in the UK. The VIKINGWAYULTRA.

2010

I WON the first edition of THE HIGH, and I was the only finisher of this 222km race in the Himalayas at altitudes reaching 18000ft!

Just completed my John O Groats to Lands End run in 15 days and 4 hours!!!

Training hard at the moment for the upcoming JOGLE ultra. 868 miles from John O Groats to Lands End, averaging around 55 miles per day. Hoping to raise money for Marie Curie. www.justgiving.com/MARK-COCKBAIN

2009

A busy year for races. In March I went to Chile to run the Atacama Crossing. A beautiful volcanic desert and a very tough race due to the high altitude.

I also took part in Britains longest ever non-stop race, the Thames Ring. 250 miles of Thames path and canal from Goring in Oxford, into central London to join onto the Grand Union Canal, then upto Coventry and back down towards Goring via the Oxford canal and Thames path. It took me 90 hours to run it and I was pleased to finish in 5th place.

I also completed another Grand Union Canal Race (GUCR), 145 miles non-stop from Birmingham to London. I struggled through another Badwater (only two weeks after the Thames Ring) and finished my fifth Spartathlon.

SPARTATHLON 2008

Scott Jurek won his third consecutive Spartathlon this year in 22:20, and I managed to just scrape a new PB with 34:23.

About 10 Brits were among around 300 starters on this historical 153 mile non-stop ultra from Athens to Sparta, with an overall race time limit of 36 hours. Around 50% finished the race this year.

ULTRATRAIL MONT BLANC

The Ultra-trail Mont Blanc (UTMB) is a very tough 100 mile off road ultra that takes 2000 runners through 3 countries, starting from Chamonix in France, through Italy, then Switzerland and then back to Chamonix.

I ran this spectacular circuit around the Mont Blanc mountain range in 41hrs and 28mins.

It was one of the toughest races I have completed, with around 9400 metres of positive altitude change and several intermediate time cut off points, with an overall time limit of 46 hours. (see race reports)

ULTRABALATON

It took me 30 hours and 40 mins to run the 212km (135) miles around the circumfrence of lake Balaton in Hungary, on a red hot weekend.

This is only the second year that this ultra has been staged, with a top international field of ultra runners.

I met  the legendary Yannis Kouros, who rocketed home in around 19 hours!

The race has a fairly tight 32 hour cut off time, with 50 out out the 100 starters finishing.

LIBYAN CHALLENGE

I've just returned from running the Libyan Challenge. It was a really tough 118 mile course over every terrain imaginable. Rocks, hills, dunes and severe downhills.

Navigation was tricky, using GPS, and I think most competitors got lost at some point during the race, including myself.

Overall, it was an excellently organised event, and great value for money.

Managed to complete the course in 55hrs 56mins.

SPARTATHLON 2007

I managed to finish my third consectutive Spartathlon in a new PB of 34 hours and 24 mins. Again, there was two very hot back to back days of running, where athletes run from the Athens to Sparta (153 miles non-stop), in a very tight time limit of 36 hours.