The Ice Ultra

Jack Folkestone (2012, E)

Upon finishing the Marathon des Sables in 2021, I thought that it may be wise to hang the running trainers up for a little while and potentially take up a less arduous hobby. However, such is the running ‘bug’ that having taken on the heat of the desert, I set my sights this time on the cold of the Arctic Circle.

The Ice Ultra in its 9th iteration is a 230km footrace across the Northern arena of Lapland, Sweden, taking on the golden abyss of arctic temperatures as low as -50 degrees. The Beyond the Ultimate race challenges all competitors to run across snowfields, arctic tundra, frozen lakes and much more in the race for the finish. Below, I will try my best to recount the days as it happened throughout the race and most importantly explain the amazing cause I was running for, Horatio’s Garden.

The first, and logistically most challenging, task was managing to get to the start of the race. The runners made the long journey up to northern Sweden to the small town of Gallivare, a town where a snow shovel was a must, and my pronunciation of the town’s name certainly gave the locals something to laugh about. From here, we set off in pursuit of the start line at the Mountain Centre at Stora Sjöfallets, where we had a rigorous kit check of all the essentials, from blizzard bags to thermal insoles; it was not the best place to forget to pack warm things. Our first night was undoubtedly a wake up for all the senses, sleeping atop reindeer skins which had a hearty smell, and out on the snow in teepees. Needless to say, I have had better nights’ sleep, and hoped that the rest of the camps were not quite as cold.

Competitors at the finish line.

Day One

The team set out with a flat section of easy running to lure the runners into a false sense of security, until we got to the UNESCO world heritage area of Laponia. Before long, we were climbing up to a high plateau with our snow shoes, where we started to be exposed to the elements. Crossing the first frozen lake of the race I stood, for the first of many times, with nothing but a layer of ice between me and the deep, bone-chilling water. The first day was 60km long excluding the elevation gain and it was certainly a relief descending through the thick pine forest to the hunters’ cabins at Aktse: our camping spot for the night.

Day Two

After the gentle conditions of day one, we set off on day two with a certain sense of optimism. This stage, known as ‘The Climb’ or ‘Kabla’, required us to make a steep climb up Mount Kabla. However, our optimism was short lived as we summitted and found ourselves at the mercy of the wind and snow. These battered us during our climb, with temperatures plummeting to -50 degrees and winds flailing. The Sami tribesmen and race directors even struggled in the comfort of their teepees. Fortunately, with the help of some of the fellow runners’ supportive group mentality, I found myself two stages down after the 44km ‘Kabla’ stage, and needed to defrost at camp. That day alone wiped out half the runners through cold, and several required medical care.

Day Three

Day three was upon us and, having just about dried our kit over the fire, we kitted up and headed for the start line of ‘The Lakes’. Throughout the day we traversed across 44km of frozen lakes and with the number of runners being slowly depleted, it was becoming quiet. It was important to stay on the track, to avoid any water on the ice or, worse, managing to put a foot through the ice. Despite the danger, the lakes were beautiful and we caught a glimpse of reindeer, arctic foxes and, to top it off, we had Swedish fighter jets dogfighting above us – certainly a day to remember.

Day Four

This fourth stage, ‘Sami’, is named for the Sami people who are indigenous to this area of Sweden. They make up our local race team and their skills in this environment keep competitors safe during the race. We passed through a number of their villages, which was bewildering, as they were the first people we had seen in a while. They smiled and waved us on. The 64km stage felt never-ending and, in a battle for 3rd place, I spent a lot of the day chasing the man in front. However, having put my foot through the ice, I found myself behind, cold, but placed fourth at the beginning of last day. I was very much in need of being cut out of my snow shoes!

Day Five

The final stage, or ‘The Sprint’ due to being ‘just’ 15km, was the final test. We woke up on the Arctic Circle and headed for the finish line. Sitting 10 minutes off 3rd place, my competitive instinct kicked in, and I gave everything I had left to catch up with my competition. However, it was not meant to be – I crossed the line with the 3rd and 5th runners.

It was quite the overwhelming experience coming back to the normality of an Arctic Camp, with running water and showers, but the most important part of it all was raising over £25,000 pounds for an amazing cause.

As ever, an epic challenge is in need of an even greater cause. Horatio’s Garden nurtures the wellbeing of people after spinal injury in beautiful gardens located in NHS spinal injury centres. The charity holds a very special place in my heart, and I have seen it grow from one spinal centre in Salisbury District Hospital, to a presence in practically every spinal unit in the country. Recently, Horatio’s Garden won ‘Best in Show’ in the RHS Chelsea Flower Show which, in the horticultural world, is as good as it can get!

However, there are more gardens yet to be built, and more amazing spinal patients and their families to be supported. The gardens themselves offer a vibrant, beautiful sanctuary for patients suffering from spinal injuries, within the heart of the NHS. Impact studies demonstrate that everyone benefits – patients, their families and loved ones, and the hospital staff too. A great friend I met through Horatio’s Garden, and a victim of a spinal injury, described Horatio’s Garden in the only way I see fit: as ‘putting life back into a lifeless body’. Olivia Chapple and her team do such an amazing job and it is an honour and a privilege to work alongside them all.

To learn more, and support Horatio’s Garden, visit their website: https://www.horatiosgarden.org.uk/ To contribute directly to Jack’s total for his Ice Ultra Challenge, visit his Just Giving page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/jack-folkestone2