Blind veterans prepare to take on South Coast Ultra Challenge
A team of blind veterans will push their physical and mental limits this September as they take on the South Coast Ultra Challenge.
On 5 September, seven veterans supported by Blind Veterans UK will set off from Eastbourne along the South Downs Way, each tackling distances of 25km, 57km or 100km. Those attempting the full 100km will arrive in Arundel after approximately 24 hours.
Each of our seven veterans will walk with a guide, supporting one another throughout the challenge as they raise vital funds and awareness for blind veterans.
Training for the challenge
Training side by side as a team ahead of the South Coast Ultra challenge
In June, four of our challengers completed a training week at our Rustington Centre. They took part in a series of carefully planned walks across different terrains and distances, while also experiencing a range of weather conditions.
The aim of the week was to build fitness and resilience, preparing them for the challenge ahead. The week gave them confidence and equipped them with valuable information on nutrition and stretching.
Building strength and confidence together during their training week at Rustington
Andy: “We’re not going to let the South Coast Ultra beat us”
Andy, 52, has taken on the challenge for the past two years alongside his wife Angie as his guide. He is no stranger to physical challenges; this year he completed his 11th London Marathon and is mid-way through a 200-mile-a-month challenge.
In 2024 and 2025, the pair had hoped to complete 100km, but weather conditions in 2024 stopped them in their tracks.
“We were beaten again last year when Angie fell ill at 37km but it’s a huge testament to her that she managed to keep going and got me to the 57km mark where we then hung up our shoes. We’re not going to let the South Coast Ultra beat us and we are back again this year with 100km once again our target.”
Andy and Angie will also be joined by Barney, a serving member of the British Army and a friend of Andy’s from his running club.
Andy served 19 years in the Army with the Royal Logistics Corps. He was forced to retire early at 37 following sight loss caused by retinitis pigmentosa. Andy says:
“Blind Veterans UK has invested a lot of time over the years to help me rebuild my life when I’d lost all hope. They made me realise what was possible and gave me the confidence to start doing physical activities again.
“The South Coast Ultra is a fantastic event in which I can come together with my fellow blind veterans. All of us have experienced some form of loneliness even though we are surrounded by people but being together and sharing our experiences really supports our mental health and wellbeing.”
Steve: “I want to do better than last year”
Steve, 62, took on the South Coast Ultra last year alongside his son and his son’s work colleagues. Steve completed the 25km distance and this year is aiming to reach the 57km line.
“I want to do better than last year, I don’t feel I was prepared enough physically or mentally. I’m busy training but hills are lacking where I live so I’m using my treadmill with different inclines to give me that practice."
Steve enlisted into the Army at 20-years-old and served with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. During Steve’s service he was stationed in Berlin when the Berlin Wall came down on 9 November 1989.
Over the last five years, Steve’s eyesight has deteriorated due to diabetic retinopathy. He was registered sight impaired in 2023.
“I now have no sight or light perception at all in my right eye and my left eye is very blurred. I knew my sight loss was coming but the moment I was no longer able to drive and my independence was taken away, I felt very alone. Driving was a huge part of my life, I had a motorbike and we owned a campervan which we took our holidays in, that whole part of my life disappeared.”
Steve discovered our charity while searching on the internet for available support.
“I got in touch with Blind Veterans UK and within two weeks they had me on an induction course. When I arrived for the course, I’d lost my confidence but during the course I felt able to open up as I was surrounded by people who understood me, people who had a shared military background and were living with sight loss. I left that induction course as a completely different person.”
Jerry: “I said, ‘never again!’ but here I am”
Jerry, 63, completed the 100km South Coast Ultra last year and immediately swore he would never do it again, but this year he is doubling his challenge by taking on two 100km Ultra Challenges.
He served in the RAF for 13 years and lived in nine different places during that time. His sight difficulties began in 1996, the year he left the RAF, but it was not until 2003 that he was diagnosed with Stargardt disease, a genetic eye condition.
We began supporting Jerry in 2024. He says:
“I was in a dark place at times; I was the only blind person I knew but since finding Blind Veterans UK my whole world has changed.
“My confidence to try new things has grown. This time last year, I’d never walked 100km in one hit but the effort of my other blind veterans motivated me to do it.”
Jerry completed his first South Coast Ultra in 2025 and, despite the scale of the challenge, has chosen to come back and push himself even further.
“I found the South Coast Ultra mentally tough and I actually said, ‘never again!’ but here I am and this year, I’m pushing myself twice as hard.”
In May, Jerry completed the first of his two 2026 challenges, finishing the Jurassic Coast Ultra with his guide Anne in 27 hours.
“It actually felt a little strange without the Blind Veterans UK team alongside me for the Jurassic Coast Ultra. I missed the group side of it so it was fantastic to meet back up with them for the training week in June.”
Jerry says it was during an outward-bound trip in the Lake District with fellow blind veterans that he decided to sign up again for the South Coast Ultra.
“The camaraderie is fantastic and we all support one another to take on the distances we can manage.”
With the Jurassic Coast Ultra already completed, Jerry is preparing for the South Coast Ultra in September as he continues his Double Ultra Challenge.
Karl: “The South Coast Ultra will be a new challenge for me”
Karl, 64, is aiming to complete the 57km distance but has faced a setback ahead of the event due to a detached retina, preventing him from training for eight weeks.
Karl was unable to attend the recent training week at Rustington alongside his fellow veterans but remains determined to take on the challenge. Karl is a physically active person who has taken part in a number of our activity weeks and enjoys clay pigeon shooting. He says:
“I enjoyed clay pigeon shooting prior to my sight loss and still do it alongside my friends – with my sight loss, I don’t hit much anymore though. The South Coast Ultra will be a new challenge for me and I’m looking forward to the camaraderie of doing it as part of a team.”
Karl served in the Army for five years in the 3rd Battalion Fusiliers. It was at the age of 48 that he discovered he had early onset macular degeneration. He says:
“My sight loss came on gradually so I had time to get used to adjust. I no longer have any central vision but my peripheral vision remains intact.”
Stu: “Nothing will stop me and I want to keep pushing myself”
Stu, 52, is back for his second year and is hoping to increase his distance from 57km to 100km. Stu joined the Army in 1992 at the age of 17 but was discharged due to a medical problem during his first year of service.
His sight loss was caused by a brain injury following a delayed resuscitation after a respiratory arrest. He spent three years in hospital undergoing rehabilitation. He says:
“I am lucky to be alive as there was a point where they considered turning off my life support. When I first discovered that my sight loss was not fixable, I knew I had to take life by the horns and seize any opportunity that came my way."
With specialist equipment, training and support, Stu has gone from struggling with everyday tasks to taking on major physical challenges. Last year’s South Coast Ultra marked a major milestone in his recovery.
“Last year’s South Coast Ultra marked my one-year anniversary of being out of hospital. As I crossed the finish line, I said I would never walk again but I did get something quite spiritual out of taking part and I’ve come on so much in the last 12 months; I feel much more confident in my body. Nothing will stop me and I want to keep pushing myself.”
This year, Stu is using the South Coast Ultra as part of his training for an even bigger challenge planned for 2027. He is also hoping to build on the incredible £7,000 he raised in 2025 through support from his local community.
Stu was guided by volunteers from the Veterans Volunteer Service and really enjoyed the camaraderie between them. In 2027, he plans to join them for a 350-mile walking challenge over five weeks while carrying a weighted log.
Rob: “I want to challenge myself”
Rob, 57, is taking part in the South Coast Ultra for the first time and is hoping to complete 57km. He says:
"I want to challenge myself by completing something I've not done before and I hope to raise awareness of Blind Veterans UK."
Rob served in the Army for 25 years with the 9th/12th Royal Lancers having joined at 16 straight from school. At the age of 49, Rob began suddenly and unexpectedly to lose his sight. He says:
“I was advised to attend Moorfields Eye Hospital and was told there and then that my optic nerve was dying and I could lose all the sight in my right eye at any time and my left eye was also at risk.
“The loss of independence especially the ability to drive was really challenging but I had to accept the situation and move forward with determination and humour.
“Blind Veterans UK has helped me to develop new skills to maintain my independence, from cooking safely to using assistive technology. I’ve also embraced opportunities to improve my physical wellbeing, taking part in online fitness sessions, training courses and outdoor activities so the South Coast Ultra seems like a fantastic next step.”
Jeff: "I’m determined to succeed"
Jeff, 76, is the oldest member of our South Coast Ultra team and is looking forward to the challenge of 57km. He served in the RAF as an MT Technician for 22 years.
It was at the age of 58 that Jeff lost his sight and he was forced to retire early. He says:
“I was devastated; I swapped three motorbikes for a white cane and dark glasses. I’ve experienced low mood and isolation but Blind Veterans UK has made me feel that I’m not alone and that most things are still possible with sight loss.
“I’m very active and have attended many of the charity’s adventure weeks. This is a new challenge for me, but I’m determined to succeed and to raise money for the charity that supports me. I found parts of the training week at Rustington difficult, but my fellow veterans and the staff have been really encouraging throughout.”
They’re taking on one of the UK’s toughest endurance challenges while living with sight loss. Show your support and help them make a difference for other blind veterans.
Inspired by the determination of our South Coast Ultra team? There are many ways you can take on a challenge of your own, at a level that’s right for you, while supporting blind veterans.
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