take (running) the entire London underground network (572 km) – Corriere.it

The London Underground, 272 stations, 572km and 11 different lines. On September 7, the ultra runner Jonny Davies will challenge the traffic of the English metropolis and its famous underground passing from station to station for 11 consecutive days. It won’t be a timed challenge to beat the London Tube in speed, but an endurance challenge to recreate the same route as the underground trains on the surface. Davis already raced the Victoria line leg earlier this year, a test of his crazy idea that he was starting to take shape. The 14 stops that took him from Walthamstow Central to Brixton helped him understand the changes of direction, how to manage traffic and how to avoid the people who cross the streets of the capital every day.

It took Davies 1h49min to complete the Victoria Line, passing through some of the city’s most congested junctions, such as King’s Cross and Oxford Circus. After these first 21km there were no more doubts: his Run the Tube 2023 became a reality. The strategy to follow is fundamental, choosing in which sequence to run the different lines. In fact, it goes from some sections with an average length of about 30km to the exhausting 90km of the Central line. A further difficulty in the days of the challenge will be choosing the times in which to cross London. In fact, if during the weekends the rhythm of the city has a more relaxed pace, further pressure is added on working days with the slowdowns due to commuters.

Pushing and motivating Davies in this enterprise is the desire to give back in some way all the good received thanks to the race. Starting to train and wearing running shoes every day helped him in a period that he himself defined as very dark. In his video presentation of Run the Tube 2023 Jonny talked about how running has not only had a positive impact on his physical and mental health, but has allowed him to connect and meet so many people who share his passion and in some cases some of his difficulties. For this reason, all the money raised during the challenge will go to the CALM charity, Campaign Against Living Miserably, which deals with suicide prevention. According to data reported on the CALM website, there are an average of 125 suicides per week in the UK and 75% of the cases are men. The organization hopes to reach as many people as possible by providing help, assistance and a year-round hotline to listen and give support to those who are feeling fragile, going through a difficult period or having suicidal thoughts. Davies, through his social channels, has invited people to help him raise funds and follow him in this endeavor, perhaps even accompanying him in his run between one station and another. As the ultrarunner jokes in fact if Johnny Cash can Walk the line — referring to the title of one of the great hits of the American singer — Jonny Davies for sure of Will run the line.