COLUMN
The pioneering ultra-runner on representation, how she fell for the trails, and her race plans for this summer
When Sabrina Pace-Humphreys’ GP recommended she take up running to help her battle her mental health issues neither patient nor doctor could have predicted quite how effective that treatment would be.
Now, a decade later, Sabrina –a mother of four, and a recovered alcoholic – has transformed herself from someone who couldn’t run to a respected ultradistance athlete. But above all, a runner who has turned her drive and passion into creating Black Trail Runners, a community that provides a safe space for black people whether they’re new to trail running, or experienced. A place to share lived experiences, to share runs, to share tips. A place to see and be seen. “Seven of us –a mixture of trail runners and outdoor specialists – got together to discuss this,” she says. “We looked at issues such as access, skills and representation of black people in trail running.”
Black runners are, of course, welcome but it’s important to understand that so too are white trail runners. Chatting with Sabrina is a fantastic experience as she can help runners of all backgrounds understand what diversity can mean in our world. “Take trail shoes for instance,” she explains. “At first glance they would seem obvious, but if you’re from a community who has never experienced them and never been running off-road, they’re unknown. We’re about addressing those barriers and discovering those differences.”
Her new book, Black Sheep, talks about rural racism and the problems she encountered from an early age in school.
It then follows her path that eventually saw her turning to the world of trail running for respite. Initially a road runner, she finally entered our off-road world in 2016 and has never looked back, discovering for herself the beauty of running in the mountains. “I ran 18 miles in the Pennines last weekend and said to myself ‘this is why I’m here, this... what I’m doing’. And if I can be here, you can be here too.
“But I noticed that the majority of trail runners are white males,” she says, initially settling for the explanation perhaps many of us do: it is what it is.
But as we all know, the growth of the Black Lives Matter movement changed everything, quickening our journey of discovery. “Now, I want to see a multi-racial start line,” she continues, her passion evident in everything she says.
