Hi Jez. Welcome back! So, do you remember your first ever race? Errr… no! [laughs]

OK then, what’s the earliest one you do remember? I remember running track – 800 and 1500 metres – [when I was] 13,14.

Were you any good? Yeah, well I used to win out of my class, and then out of my school but then I was mid-pack beyond that, when we did athletics meetings.

So when did you start upping the distances? I did some local fun runs, around 5-8 miles when I was perhaps 14, 15, but without any training. I played a lot of rugby which got me fit, and I was no good at cricket so by default I did athletics. And as I say I didn’t train, just had some natural fitness.

Where’s your favourite place to run? The Scottish Highlands. That was really where I fell in love with trail running, on the West Highland Way. That’s a 95-mile route from Glasgow to Fort William. I first walked it, but then I ran it. [laughs]

You make that sound almost normal. When we were walking it, we heard about people that run half of it, it’s called the Caledonia Challenge, and at that point I just found that incomprehensible really. But it sowed the seeds and that was the world I fell into, that was when I started to learn about really long-distance trail running.

Did you do marathons in between? Yes I did London in 2002 and the Great North Run, I think around 1999. I trained hard for the fitness I had at the time, and I think I did around 3’19 so that’s probably above average for a first-timer, but it certainly wasn’t a world-beating time! But it was then that I realised that I just really enjoyed training, not just the races.

What do you say when someone asks you for a training tip? I would always say to people to experiment running off-road, wherever they are. Because the UK has such an amazing network of footpaths, it opens up a different world and a different perspective on the running, as opposed to the same old loop around the pavements at home, which everyone does. Including me sometimes.

What’s your favourite running gadget? It’s got to be my Garmins. The Fenix. And then I’ve got a Garmin GPS device, the Garmin Oregon 450 – well it got me down New Zealand in pretty much a faultless way, so yeah, I love it! It’s got a colour screen with base maps and then a thick line, which is your route to follow, then where you are is basically just a crosshair. It’s an amazing bit of kit.

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Do you listen to music? Just the occasional podcast and perhaps an hour of iPod shuffle music, but generally not – 95% of the time I won’t have anything.

So what makes you turn it on then? If I’m going through a boring long flat section where I don’t have to navigate then I might listen to music. But I find my mind completely occupied by the scenery, the navigation and the sights and sounds. Particularly if you are running down New Zealand, where it’s just constantly changing, there’s constant interest.

What’s your favourite post-run indulgence? Ice-cream.

What flavour? Vanilla

Really? Isn’t that a bit, well, vanilla? I know, everyone says it’s boring … It’s probably just my sweet tooth. Far too much sugar in it and too much fat but it does give you some kind of recovery. Not that I just finish and go to the shop and buy a tub of ice-cream! I have a nice meal and then ice-cream. And that’s definitely what I’m thinking about on the run …

What’s the worst thing about running? You know I’ve never been asked that … I know! It’s just always having heaps of washing! My wife runs a lot as well, so between us … running off-road, going out twice a day – that’s a lot of kit.

Mo Farah or Usain Bolt? Mo Farah all the way. He should have won sports personality of the year in my opinion. I’m inspired most by the people who put in the greatest amount of hard work. I know the hard work that Mo must have to put in to maintain where he’s got to.

What do you eat on the morning of a long run? Not a great deal. Just a couple of bits of toast with jam and a mug of tea.

So what about eating when you are running? It’s an essential part of what we do really, as ultrarunners. If you can stomach it, and keeping eating as you are running then that’s half the battle. So it’s just practice and having a fairly durable constitution really.

So what do you eat? I attempt to eat real food, as that’s the best source of fuel. I’m not really into any of the sports nutrition products. I like to know what’s in what I’m eating. Rice pudding, if I’m doing a really long run, bits of cake, sandwiches, peanut-butter-and-jam sandwiches … If it’s hot a bit of salt, a few crisps or something like that. Not really what you’d associate as running food.

What’s the furthest distance you’ve ever run?
In one go? 145 miles. The Grand Union Canal race. I think it took 32 hours. And in New Zealand, that was 3,054km. In 53 days. My longest day there was 101km.

Have you tried barefoot running? No, the shoes I’m using now are much more stripped down and I like that, but barefoot doesn’t really appeal. I think there’s quite a lot of risk in it and I don’t think the benefit really outweighs that.

Given you’re always told to replace shoes after 300-400 miles, how many pairs must you get through? I got through 12 pairs in New Zealand. They look like they will last longer but the sole starts to go. In NZ there was so much water, I just always had wet feet, was always wading through stuff and they were just getting pretty nasty really.

Who is the greatest runner ever? [long pause for thought] I think I’m probably going to say Haile Gebrselassie. Just because of his all-round ability, from ranging from 5km up to marathon, so dominant.

Jez Bragg is a member of the North Face Global Athlete Team. He recently completed the new Te Araroa trail, the length of New Zealand from north to south. You can read more about his epic run here.

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