It is eleven years since the Scottish adventurer accomplished the remarkable feat of “running the Americas” – a 17,000 km slog on foot from Vancouver to Buenos Aires.
But the memories remain vivid for Jamie Ramsay who has written a book on the experience and that contributed to him being the obvious candidate to return to his old Belhaven Hill School, Dunbar, and officially open their inaugural “Wellbeing Weekend”.
Addressing an audience of over 160 pupils and parents Jamie explained that, during the unaccompanied run – which meant he carried belongings in a stroller – he sledged down a Venezuelan volcano but also suffered injuries which had to be overcome.
The latter, coupled with acute loneliness at some stages of the run, gelled with his belief in the power of physical challenge as an antidote to mental ill health.
Before the talk, however, Jamie took a trip back in time by leading pupils on the type of run which inspired him decades earlier and was the driving force behind his endurance feat.
When Jamie realised he was becoming ill at ease with a desk-based job in finance he talked his future over with an old Belhaven Hill friend. They shared memories of the legendary school run and from that the idea of the multi marathon crystallised.
Olly Langton, Belhaven Hill School headmaster, said: “Jamie spoke brilliantly, weaving humour and pathos into stories that scale the peaks and troughs of elation and despair.
Today, Jamie runs his own enterprise, Ramsay Adventure where he offers tips on what to take on a backpacking trip or how to book him as a motivational speaker.
Including the Americas adventure Jamie has now registered 54,000km of running.
Jamie Ramsay’s book Running the Americas is on sale now on Amazon and at local bookshops.
