Four nights in, and WA endurance powerhouse Phil Gore is looking good on his latest challenge, which takes him into unchartered territory on Thursday.
The 40-year-old Perth firefighter and endurance world record-holder is tackling what he has dubbed “Project 168”, a brutal and non-stop seven-day solo running challenge to raise $168,000 for Telethon.
He is now more than half-way through his epic quest to complete a 6.7km loop of the Armadale Soccer Club oval on the hour for 168 consecutive hours.
BY the 72-hour mark yesterday morning he had raised more than $62,000.
He has been joined on the run by Telethon star Harrison Carthew and was discussed on US podcaster and sports commentator Joe Rogan’s show, while British TV personality Ant Middleton sent a message of encouragement.
Gore started the challenge on Sunday and is set to complete a staggering seven full days without a night’s sleep, covering a distance that eclipses most elite multi-day ultra-marathons.
“Looking strong at lap 49, he is happy that the first two nights are done as they are always traditionally his worst two nights to get through as his body gets used to the calorie influx,” his team told Western Suburbs Weekly on Tuesday.
“He has been getting 5-10 mins of sleep per loop on the night laps … so maybe 40-60 mins sleep (interrupted) per night.”
By Day 3, he was getting stronger as the laps ticked over - and was getting an appetite back as he kicked into another gear.
Mr Gore already holds the backyard ultra world record after last year running for 199 hours straight and completing 798km.
He also boasts an Oceanic best over 24 hours, having covered just over 270km during a record attempt in 2024.
But the confines of standard events now leave Gore with a lingering sense of unfinished business.
“With a backyard ultra, if you’re the last one standing ... you’re kind of like the only person in the event who doesn’t get to find out what their limit is because the reason you stopped is because the event had to stop,” he said.
“I’ve won a lot of them and get to that point where I feel like I can keep going... so I though, let’s just do a solo one, make a big event out of it and use it as a good cause to raise money for Telethon.”
To survive seven days of relentless movement, Gore calculated his physical strategy down to the exact minute.
Rather than standard rest, he relies on a carefully structured cycle of 15-minute micro-naps during the night.
To buy himself time to sleep, he runs “fast laps” of about 35 to 40 minutes, leaving him a razor-thin window to shower, rest and be woken up by his support crew before the next hour strikes.
“On my plan, there’s nine sleep laps, all overnight,” he said.
“I’ll do three fast laps in a row to sleep, and the one slower lap to give my body a chance to reset.”
Despite the extreme sleep deprivation, Gore said his mind had adapted over time with experience.
“The first couple of nights, the sleep’s a little bit harder. Bur the longer I go, the sleep comes a bit more easily.... I could lie down for 20 minutes, and when I wake up, it feels like I’ve been asleep for two or three hours,” he said.
Staying focused over 168 hours of solitary pacing requires a high degree of mental strength and sheet grit.
“I’ve just learned to handle hard things,” Gore said.
“It can get boring at the start.... you’re 24 or 48 hours in, and you know you’ve still got a long way to go, it can feel like a grind. But the deeper I get into it, the more I get zoned in.”
To keep him moving and boost the fundraising effort, members of the public can “book a lap” to run alongside him by making a donation to Telethon.
Gore said he didn’t want to set himself a goal he knew he could achieve and going into the challenge he was excited to push himself to a new limit.
“I feel confident I can get to five days. Anything after that is unchartered territory,” he said.
“I absolutely believe it’s possible, but I know it’s going to be a big challenge.”
Watch his progress, leave a message of support or donate at philgore.com.au.
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