We spoke to Russ Cook, AKA the Hardest Geezer, at the 2026 edition of 247 Mission: Rivington. Russ is one of the world’s best known ultra-endurance athletes, having run from Istanbul to Worthing, the full length of New Zealand, and (incredibly) the full length of Africa.
*The audio interview has been lightly edited for readability
On these massive running challenges, how much do you enjoy the scenery and passing through different places? Or is it all physical and you are just locked in a pain cave?
The capacity to enjoy the scenery largely depends on the capacity I have left in my own mind. So if I’m really in the pain cave, then I’m just staring at the ground. I don’t even notice what’s around me, but I do try and remind myself to be as present as possible. Especially when you’re in a beautiful spot and it’s nice to appreciate where you are. That actually kind of helps sometimes.
Where’s the most memorable place you’ve run?
Probably the Sahara Desert. There’s just nothing around for thousands of kilometers in every direction and you’re like, if you told me I was on Mars right now, I’d say, yeah, fair.
It’s pretty memorable. Sandstorms coming from every direction, getting pelted by the sun, gobbling up sand. This is pretty loose.
New Zealand’s also beautiful. What was the best place in New Zealand? South Island, maybe in the Wanaka or Queenstown areas. Oh it’s outrageous. So good.
Do you eat ‘local’ on these trips? If yes, what’s the best energy food/drink you’ve had?
Yeah, largely I will eat local, sometimes to my own detriment. Taste-wise, I had this cow spine in Ivory Coast. It was unreal. Sounds rogue, doesn’t it? I think it was a cow spine… Not 100% sure. It was so good. From a taste point of view it was unreal.
For fuel, it’s kind of back to basics really. Sugar. I had little donut things in West Africa a lot. Chapatis. I miss chapatis, they were great.
What’s the most underrated skill in endurance?
I’d say boredom tolerance is really important. You have to be able to tolerate the boredom.
On the Africa run, are there any surprising places you’d love to go back to?
I always want to go back to Namibia. It’s the second least densely populated country in the world, so there’s not really many people there, but the people we did meet were great. The Skeleton Coast is beautiful and I didn’t get to see it properly the first time.
Parts of West Africa, like Ghana, were really nice and then somewhere in North Africa, like Algeria or Mauritania. There are loads of places I’d go back to, it’s just fitting it all in!
What race have you most enjoyed running?
Probably the Backyard Ultra. It’s an enjoyable format. I only did 21 laps, which was way under what I was hoping to do because I ran into some stomach issues. But it’s also quite nice in a way, because it’s given me a good reason to go back and do it again.
Learn more about different zones of running and what they mean.
