A THRILLSEEKING mum who battled through a six-day ultramarathon in 60 degree heat says it is the toughest event she has ever done and on par with childbirth.

On the first taster day of the Marathon des Sables in southern Morocco, the protective gaiters on Somei Back’s trainers - designed to keep out sand and debris - melted in the heat two-thirds of the way into a 30km run.

After limping to the finish, medics strapped her toes with surgical tape and the rest of the 254km marathon was spent praying blisters away and creating makeshift shoe protection.

Mrs Back 52, said: “When sand gets in your shoes, it just becomes cement and fills every crevice. And had I have got blisters, it would’ve been game over.

“For the rest of the week, I kept mending my gaiters and even had to borrow a staple gun to keep them on my shoes.

“I never thought I could be so resourceful and in a way, it took my mind off everything else that was happening.”

Clacton and Frinton Gazette:

Strapped up - surgical tape saved Somei from agonising blisters

The Marathon des Sables is branded as the toughest footrace on Earth, forcing runners to endure testing terrain carrying their own provisions - a 10kg bag in Mrs Back’s case.

In a field of about 1,300 participants, a shocked and proud Mrs Back was one of only 233 women.

She signed up because her “extremely fit and disciplined” triathlete husband Trevor decided it was too tough for him - but also for the injured veterans who could not.

The mum-of-one has raised more than £1,000 for Blesma, the limbless veterans charity.

As a seasoned marathon runner, she has just 19 left before joining the 100 Marathon Club which she aims to by 53. She ran her first marathon aged 50.

Clacton and Frinton Gazette:

She said: “I get quite emotional when I think about it because some of the climbs we had to do were sheer rock face without any support apart from one rope.

“At one point I remember standing at the bottom of the mountain looking up and my knees went weak. That’s never happened to me before.

“But I thought of Blesma and got a hold of myself. I also thought when I finish this, I’ve earned myself a lifetime of bragging rights to my husband throughout the remainder of our marriage.

“He’s not keen to do it because I admitted it’s the toughest event I’ve ever done and I don’t think he’d have enjoyed it because a lot of it was very solitary.”

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