My name is Stu, and I'm one of Far Runners run leaders.

My fitness journey started back in 2015 when suffering from something of an early mid-life crisis, I decided to join a gym in the hope of balancing out my passion for beer and pie. At that point I started to dabble in a bit of running, I loved the idea of races/events, but the training bit not so much and I really struggled with the motivation to get out there on my lonesome. It wasn't until I joined Far Runners in 2021 that things really started to change... first off, I got to meet all kinds of wonderful runners from all different walks of life, many who have become some of my favourite people. I started to find people would notice if I missed a few runs, just as I'd notice if other runners weren't around for a while, which really helped push me to keep coming back. It wasn't long before I found I wasn't forcing myself to go and run, rather I was going out to catch up with friends. On top of that I was running gorgeous routes on the Tuesday/ Sunday runs that I had no idea were right on my doorstep, which in large part was down to the tireless efforts of the run leaders.

Far Runners has made me fitter, faster and happier in myself, pushing me to achieve things I never dreamt possible, including completing my first ever marathon and my first (but certainly not last) 100k race!

Wanting to give something back to the wonderful leaders that inspired me so much, and with the hope of inspiring others in my own little way, I became a run leader in 2022. As a runner I'm partial to occasionally pushing myself to get a road race PB but am most at home running a nice ultra-marathon in the countryside, where I can go at whatever pace I'm comfortable with, without any pressure and just take in the wonderful scenery around me.