When I heard that Sarah Porter had been pulled out of the Spine Challenger South for safety reasons I was intrigued. When I learned it was because she received death threats for running in aid of women in Afghanistan, I knew I wanted to talk to her; if she couldn’t run for those women, at least we could share her story and the story of those girls.

Here’s some text from Sarah’s GoFundMe; please do help if you. The terrorists may have forced Sarah to stop running, but don’t let them stop her getting their message out.

What it means to be a young woman in Afghanistan in 2025.

* 25% surge in child marriages since 2021

* With girls, as young as 7 years old, being sold into marriages

* ⁠Nearly 80% of Afghan school-age girls are currently deprived of their right to secondary and higher education.

* Women’s participation in the formal workforce is down to about 5%

* Nearly 60% of Afghan women felt unsafe leaving the house without a mahram.

* ⁠Talking in public is prohibited as is the sound of a woman’s voice

How your donation can help.

From coordinating aid and travel documentation through to developing new humanitarian uses of AI, your donations are vital to starting the journey to safety and the beginning of a dream becoming a reality.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/sarah-porter-spine-race-2026

Phil Hayday-Brown

Before Christmas we caught up with Phil Hayday-Brown, who kindly took time out of his busy schedule to talk to us about all things Spine related.

We chat about Phil’s background in arctic expeditions and how The Spine started back in 2012. How it’s developed over the years and the new races introduced along the way. He also gives us an exclusive on a major new change for 2027.

🎙️ Thanks for tuning in! If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to follow the podcast and leave a quick rating or review; it really helps other runners find the show.

Big thanks to our seasonal Sponsor, Core Body Temp whose Core 2 is currently being reviewed by Nick Hancock of Maximum Mileage Coaching. We also have a special episode sponsor Kahtoola who have recently released the Ghost MICROspikes and our review of them will be out soon too.

💡 For more stories, gear insights, and training tips from the world of ultra and trail running, head over to run-ultra.com.

👉 And if you’ve got questions, feedback, or a race story to share, I’d love to hear from you; send a message to kate@run-ultra.com.

Until next time, keep putting one foot in front of the other and enjoy the adventure

As the 2025 trail, fell and ultra-running season comes to a close, our thoughts turn to the epic events of the year.

From Lucy Gossage and Kim Collison’s wins at the Spine race back in January, Sarah Perry’s continued dominance at the Backyard events, to Arthur Hill setting a new record on the Winter Bob Graham Round....Dan Lawson setting a new SWCP FKT, Tom Evans winning UTMB and Hugh Tibbs breaking the 100 mile trail record……

Yet again, the year has been an exceptional one for British trail, fell and ultra running!

So we at The Home Trails Podcast, RunUltra and Robin The Running Accountant, have brought to you another year of the Trail and Ultra Running Awards!

How does the voting work?

Please take a few minutes to fill out the voting survey below and let us know who you think deserves to be recognised for their contribution to trail, fell and ultra running this year.

This year we have no suggestions (and for good reason 😂), the answers are up to you, if you’re not sure about some categories, then give the podcast on Home Trails and RunUltra a listen as we round up the year category by category.

You might be thinking ‘what do I get out of this?’ Great question……YOU get to win a prize bundle of untold awesomeness, which will be announced in the near future! It will be WELL worth your time we promise!!

Complete the voting form and your name will be added into the prize draw. All votes will be counted and the person/entity/product with the most votes wins. Voting ends at midnight on the 10th of January 2026 and the winner will be announced a few days later, along with the winners from all categories that you vote on. So get voting to be in with a chance to snag these mystery goodies!

Again, thank you for taking the time to read this paragraph and for taking part!

Ultrarunning Sam/Home Trails

Kate from RunUltra

Robin The Running Accountant