Usually on Sea to Sky we like to feature the amazing sporting and adventurous feats of women – but at times someone does something so extraordinary that is does not matter what gender they are. Jamie McDonald, 27, has become the first person to run across Canada unassisted. The Gloucester native started his journey in St John, Newfoundland, and finished 5,000 miles later in Vancouver.

I’m waiting in the lobby of Marriott Residence Hotel in Downtown Vancouver. Jamie is late and I’m getting worried. Has he forgotten? I ask the desk to ring his room and a sleepy sounding voice answered. I had woken him up and felt terrible – after all he must be tired. He has just run across a continent and the North American and British media have been all over him.

Even though he was knackered he was apologising for being late — I was apologising for waking him up. Jamie was wearing his Flash superhero outfit that, after 5,000 miles, was looking tatty and is hanging off his lean frame.

My first thought on meeting this young Brit is how down to earth and normal he is – but he is far from ordinary. Jamie has cycled from Bangkok to Gloucester on a second hand bike. Once he was back, he decided, as you do, to break the world static cycling record — which he did by 44 miles.

Then one day, while on the BBC being interviewed about his world record, he was asked what he was going to do next. His answer: “I am going to run across Canada.”

But why – and what drives him to complete these almost super human feats?

“I spent most of the first nine years of my life in hospital. I have a condition called Syringomyelia. As a kid I couldn’t move my legs and I had immune deficiency. The list goes on and on. “After nine years, at nine years of age, my symptoms disappeared. I was really, really lucky. This is my way of trying to give back to the hospitals that helped me out.” #

The hospital and charity that helped him are Great Ormond Street Hospital, and the children’s charity, Pied Piper. While running across Canada he also raised money for local children’s hospitals and hospices.

He decided to dress up as a superhero to state that anyone can be a superhero. ‘Flash’ came about thanks to social media. “I put four costumes up for vote on Facebook. I put up Supergirl, Super Mario, and Batma, but everyone voted for Flash.

“It was only going to be for 15 marathons, but I seem to have adopted this character, and I started doing a lot of speaking in schools and they loved it. I thought if they love it, and I love it, why should I take it off, even though it’s been seven months in one suit.” It didn’t take long for the Canadians to warm to this eccentric Brit running along their rural roads in an eye-catching red costume. “The reception I have had is unbelievable. Right at the beginning of the journey no one had a clue who I was. I would just knock on peoples doors asking, ‘Hey is there any chance…’ and they would invite me in, and I would get a meal or sometimes a couch or a bed.” Jamie seems humbled by the hospitality and support he has received. However, even with his positive and go getting attitude, he began to struggle in the interior farming province of Saskatchewan. “Everything started to go wrong and I wasn’t sure if I could make it. The -40 temperatures started kicking in. I picked up chronic tendinitis in the foot.

“My worse moment was the day I just cried all day. I woke up in the morning and the tears started to flow and I couldn’t leave my hotel room. I didn’t want to run. It was the last thing I wanted to do. I’d been suffering with chronic tendinitis. I had to accept the fact I wasn’t going to make it back for Christmas with the family.

“I ran though the whole thing. I ran and cried, ran and cried. What was really nice was this message got out to complete strangers. Before I knew it a car pulled up and they were like how are you doing Jamie – then more tears came… It was heart-warming because strangers were turning up just to see if I was all right.”

Together with the difficult moments there was euphoric ones too that made the pain and freezing Temperatures worth it.

“Making the decision to go to sick kids’ hospitals was the best I made. From Ottawa I made the decision to go down to Toronto and back up, which was an extra 15 marathons on top of the journey. I knew if I was going to choose that route it could possibly jeopardise the whole journey, or I’d end up battling though the winter. I stood on the side of the road for 30 minutes. I didn’t know which one to take.

“Eventually I went for it. When I got to the hospital in Toronto the kids came out dressed as super heroes as were the doctors and nurses, and it became one of the most inspirational days in my life. We ended up rising $30,000.After that I thought even if I don’t make it nothing can take away that experience that I had and the money that I raised.”

Canada throws up many hazards – arctic temperatures, high and steep mountains, long stretches of flat featureless land, and of course bears.

“I met one bear. I was absolutely terrified. It was a black bear. When I saw it I ended up crouching down, hyperventilating.”

The bear didn’t attack him, but an attack did come – from a human. While in the ski resort of Banff in the Rockies, he was beaten up on New Years Eve .

“They came out and dragged me into their room and pulled me into the toilet, and three men just continued to punch me in the head and in the body,” McDonald told CBC’s Ian Hanomansing.

“And so I kind of just scrambled to get out of the hotel.” This setback didn’t deter Jamie – he carried on running though the Rockies, the highest mountain range in North America, in the height of winter to make it to Vancouver.

“It was unreal. They closed off the streets of Vancouver and I had a police escort. There were people out on the street joining in. It was phenomenal.” Jamie has raised over $250,000 for sick children in both Canada and the UK. So after 5,000 miles, what is next? For now he’s not sure, but one thing he is sure about is that he is looking forward to his mum’s roast dinners.

If you would like to donate to Jamie’s course click here.