A TREFNANT ex-Royal Engineer who ‘trains hard to fight easy’ has made running three marathons in three days look like a seaside stroll while raising more than £1,000 for cancer treatment in North Wales.

Brett Jones, dad-of-two, who runs for Denbigh Harriers took part in the Votwo Jurrasic Coast Challenge, running along the 95-mile Jurassic Coastal Path from Devon to Dorset between March 22 and 24.

About 180 people took part in the event each day – though only 140 ran all the three courses – and Mr Jones, who served 10 years in the Royal Engineers, finished in the top 10 each time.

Mr Jones also achieved his target of raising £1,100 for the North Wales Cancer Treatment Centre at Glan Clwyd Hospital.

“Even the day after I felt OK because I’d trained for it,” he said.

“I looked into the route before but it is hard to predict, I was so used to training on the Clwydian Range, and there is always the chance of injuries which can slow your progress down.

Denbighshire Free Press:

The Devon coastline isn't the worst place to try and break through the pain barrier.

“But I always say, ‘Train hard and fight easy’. I was able to complete them all under five hours and managed to finish in the top 10 each time.

“When I finished the first day and my knees were aching, I thought to myself, ‘Crikey I’ve got to run that again tomorrow’. But by the next day I was ready to go, and by day three it became normal.“

Mr Jones ran 27 miles in 4hrs 11 mins to finish 7th on day one, 28 miles 4hrs 47 mins to finish 4th on day two, and another 28 miles in 4hrs 55 mins to finish 6th on day three – a total of 83 miles.

Mr Jones’ wife, Haf, and children, aged 8 and 13, were waiting for him at the finish line each day.

“I tired a bit each day and there was an element of climbing in each one. At some points it was really steep, both up and down. We climbed about 10,500 feet in total,” he said.

”We were lucky with the weather on the first two days as there was light cloud, though the third day was sunny and on the last stretch we had to run along the beach; I could feel heat exhaustion setting in.

Denbighshire Free Press:

Mr Jones still standing after completing all three marathons.

“The scenery was amazing, and we were running along the Dorset cliffs at times, though at some sections we were deviated a mile inland because they are at risk of collapsing!

“We’ve raised more than the fundraising target, which will go towards the North Wales Cancer Appeal and the fantastic work they do for those living locally and battling this terrible disease at Glan Clwyd Hospital’s North Wales Cancer Treatment Centre.

"I would like to thank everyone who has donated.

“There’s not a person out there who hasn’t been affected by cancer in some way, be it relatives or friends, so it’s a worthwhile cause.”

To donate to Mr Jones’ fundraiser, visit the Just Giving page.