Joss Naylor MBE

With Tich and Spy on Buckbarrow high above Wastwater in Wasdale.

Joss Naylor MBE (Born on 10 February 1936 at Wasdale Head) is an English fell runner. Naylor is a sheep farmer, living in the English Lake District, as his achievements increased he became better known as the King of the Fells or simply the Iron Man .

His fell running achievements include successive peak bagging records within the scope of the Bob Graham Round:
1971: 61 peaks in 23h37m
1972: 63 peaks in 23h35m
1975: 72 peaks, claimed to involve over 100 miles and about 38,000 feet of ascent in 23h20m
His other fell running achievements include:
1973: The Welsh 3000s - the 14 peaks of Snowdonia in 4h46m
1974: The Pennine Way: 3 days and 4 hours
1983: The Lakes, Meres and Waters circuit of 105 miles in 19h20m
1986: (age 50) completed the Wainwrights in 7 days
1997: (age 60) ran 60 Lakeland fell tops in 36 hours
2006: (age 70) ran 70 Lakeland fell tops, covering more than 50 miles and ascending more than 25,000 feet, in under 21 hours.

He considered the 72 peak Lakeland circuit as his own greatest achievement, setting a record which stood unbroken for 13 years. He was awarded the MBE for his services to sport and charity, and is included as one of Britain's top 100 sports personalities in the 2007 book Best of British: Hendo's Sporting Heroes, by sports journalist Jon Henderson.

Olympic Gold medal winner and co-founder of the London Marathon Chris Brasher described Joss Naylor as 'The Greatest of Them All', a title he bestowed on Joss when he ran 72 Lake District mountains in 24 hour

Joss still runs on the fells and carried the Olympic Torch on June 21st. His Nomination Story is Joss Naylor, Lakeland shepherd and champion fell runner has been an inspiration to generations of young runners. Told in his twenties that he'd damaged his back so badly he'd never be able to compete as a runner, he overcame the injury and has won every fell running event in Lakeland and competed and won as far afield as America. Chris Brasher once wrote that if fell running had been an Olympic sport Joss could have beaten Zatapek. To celebrate his 60th birthday Joss ran the 60 highest peaks in Lakeland. He still runs on the Lakeland mountains most days in all weathers.