WHW Race POD

Roberta Fletcher finished third in the West Highland Way Race in 2024. She returned a year later and finished second. In 2026, she completed that progression by winning the women’s race in 18 hours, 46 minutes and 58 seconds. It was a brilliantly controlled performance. Roberta was seventh woman at Balmaha, but remained calm, trusted the effort she had planned and gradually moved through the field...

The Work Is Done: Only Days Until the West Highland Way Race With less than a couple of weeks to go until the West Highland Way Race, many runners find themselves asking the same question: "Have I done enough?" In this episode, Paul reflects on the final days before race day and explores why the focus now should shift away from training and towards preparation, mindset and decision-making. The rea...

WHW Race Pod In this episode of the WHW Race Pod, Paul talks about one of the most important and often overlooked parts of the West Highland Way Race experience: crewing. The WHW is one of the few races where having a crew is mandatory, and the relationship between runner and crew can genuinely shape the outcome of the race. A calm, organised and adaptable crew can help carry a runner through the...

With the West Highland Way Race now just a couple of months away, many runners find themselves in a familiar place. Training hasn’t quite gone how they hoped. Missed sessions. Disrupted consistency. Life getting in the way. And with that often comes a quiet pressure to catch up. To do more, and to fix things quickly. In this episode, Paul explores why that instinct can lead you further away from w...

SHOW NOTES Most people imagine the West Highland Way Race as something dramatic. The climbs. The tough sections. The big moments where everything is on the line. And those moments are part of it. But they’re not the race. In this episode, we explore one of the most overlooked skills in ultrarunning - the ability to handle the long, quiet, repetitive stretches where nothing much is happening. Becau...

Show Notes In this episode of the WHW Race Pod, I’m speaking directly to those of you who are about sixteen weeks out from the West Highland Way Race. This is a deceptively important point in the build. It’s where people either decide… or they drift. Drift doesn’t look dramatic. It doesn’t look like quitting. It looks like training that’s “fine.” Weeks that tick over. Long runs that feel comfortab...

Show Notes In this episode of the WHW Race Pod, I sit down with Lucy Colquhoun , who still holds the women’s course record at the West Highland Way Race , set in 2007 in a time of 17:16:20. Nearly two decades later, that performance still stands. But this conversation goes far beyond splits and statistics. Lucy reflects on who she was when she lined up in Milngavie in 2007: an enthusiastic amateur...

The WHW Audio Companion – Week 1 In this episode of the WHW Race Pod , Paul introduces the WHW Audio Companion - a short, reflective series designed to support runners through the training months leading into the West Highland Way Race. This isn’t a training plan or a list of sessions. It’s guided thinking. Paul explores the deeper question that sits underneath every long build: what are you reall...

In this episode of the WHW Race Pod , Paul explores what makes the West Highland Way Race different from so many other ultramarathons. This isn’t a breakdown of splits, cut-offs, or results. It’s a reflection on the quieter qualities of the race - the ones that don’t always show up on a start line or a screen. Paul shares his own journey into the race, from first hearing about it at a time when li...

Episode description In this episode of the WHW Race Pod, Paul sits down with Gus Irvine , winner of the 2025 West Highland Way Race. Gus ran a controlled, composed race from Milngavie to Fort William, taking the win through patience, preparation, and trust in his process. But this conversation is not about how he won. It is about how the race sits with him now. Paul and Gus have spoken before, but...

In this episode of the WHW Race Pod, Paul sits down with Rebecca Hormann , the 2025 female winner of the West Highland Way Race. Rebecca ran from Milngavie to Fort William in 19:02:14 , finishing first woman and sixth overall . But this conversation is not about splits or results. It is about how the race felt, how she approached it, and what stayed with her long after the finish line. Rebecca ref...

In this first episode of the newly revived WHW Race Pod, host Paul Giblin sits down with new race director Adrian Stott to reflect on the next chapter of the West Highland Way Race. They discuss the response to this year’s ballot, race preparation, and the emotional weight of stepping into the role after Ian Beattie’s long and respected tenure. Adrian shares personal stories from the trail, moment...