Superyacht Captain Grant Maughan shares his adventures in ultramarathon running in his new book, Freezing Hot. Superyacht Captain Grant Maughan enjoys a challenge. In his 28 years in the yachting industry, he’s captained mainly explorer yachts with some intriguing cruising itineraries — including the Arctic, Antarctica, and all the oceans in between. Maughan began his maritime career in Australia on commercial fishing vessels, first in Western Australia, then on trawlers between Tasmania and the Arctic Circle — “the most dangerous occupation I have been involved in,” he said. Fishing took him all over the world, from Borneo, Southern Africa, Canada, and Northern Australia. He also worked on tugboats and cargo ships, plus a dive boat in the Red Sea and the Seychelles, but he got his start in yachting as a chief engineer on what was then the largest motor yacht in Australia. He took over as captain after bringing the boat from Mexico to Australia. Over the years, Maughan has also completed several new-build projects, and he is currently doing relief and delivery work while waiting for the next intriguing itinerary. While his career highlights are impressive, his exploits off the boat are equally so. Maughan has completed 88 ultramarathons of between 100 to 1,000 miles across mountains, desert, and ice. “I have stayed relatively healthy all my life by being active, playing sports as a kid, and surfing, biking, and diving as I got older,” Maughan said. Even so, he was not ultramarathon fit, but when the yacht owner’s son mentioned he was planning to run a marathon and asked Maughan to do a training run with him, he did. The run was on some mountain roads on the Amalfi coast in Italy. “I took him up on the offer, and after three hours, we returned, and I thought I might faint,” Maughan said. When the owner’s son also mentioned that he was planning to run a 50-mile race the following year, Maughan was skeptical, so the owner’s son gave him Ultramarathon Man by Dean Karnazes to read. “Intrigued, I read it front to back on anchor watch and immediately decided I wanted ‘ultrarunner’ associated with my name. Somehow, inherently, I knew I could do it,” Maughan said. The book was a catalyst for him — within six months, Maughan had completed two marathons and two ultramarathons, the longest of which was 100 miles from Key Largo to Key West. Since then, he’s completed 88 ultras up to and over 100 miles, including pulling a sled 1,000 miles along the Iditarod Trail in Alaska. “I have always had a passion to explore things that most people don’t, so ultrarunning fits perfectly into that slot,” he said. Now it’s his turn to inspire — his latest undertaking is writing his own book, Freezing Hot. “Everyone has stories to tell of their existence. Some, like me, feel a need to get them out. It’s a cathartic and mentally taxing task, but the reward is seeing your adventures and life experiences dug up from those deep recesses to see the light again,” Maughan said. The book details Maughan’s experiences as an ultrarunner, or as the book says: Ultrarunning through fire and ice. Tales from the trail, rumors from the road, and stories from the summit. But how, exactly, do you become an ultrarunner while simultaneously working as a superyacht captain? It turns out the answer is stubbornness. “There are two main things you need to finish an ultra — fitness and stubbornness,” Maughan said. “In my case, fitness always takes the back seat because most of the time, I don’t have the time or resources to train as much as required because of my line of work, so that means I have to recruit my stubbornness most of the time to get through these races.” Once you’re out there, it can be very easy to quit, Maughan explains. After all, no one says you must finish the race. “It’s your choice, and no matter how much aid you receive along the route, in the end, you are the only one who can get yourself to the finish line,” he said. Maughan’s training is a delicate balance with his job. “It’s important in training to balance running volume with quality workouts, which include long/slow with short/fast workouts,” he explained. “For mountain races or events towing a loaded sled, I have towed a car tire from a waist belt, sometimes using mountain roads, bridges, or on a beach.” He also advises not to neglect your sleep and nutrition. “The overriding factor to successfully completing any workout, however, is to eat quality food and get restful sleep.” “My ethos is to just turn up with what you have on the day and see what the outcome is. Most times, I have been pleasantly surprised,” Maughan said. It seems to have worked well for him — to date, he has 15 overall wins and numerous podium finishes. He competed in the famous Badwater Ultramarathon less than a year after his first ultramarathon, taking second place in less than 25 hours. Only 100 hand-picked participants are invited to run the 135-mile race in Death Valley, California, which crosses the hottest place on earth, mid-summer. Maughan has run the race seven times, with six finishes in the top 10. He intends to run it again in July. “I’m a firm believer in having a healthy outlook on a daily basis, rather than scheduling gym visits or other workouts using a time scale,” he said. “Eating well is the best start, and staying active will perpetuate your health for life.” These days, the captain’s job includes a lot of admin work, so he makes sure to stand at his desk and take hourly breaks for general bodyweight exercises and stretching. If the vessel is at anchor, he tries to take advantage of opportunities to swim and paddleboard, and when docked, he walks, runs, or bikes everywhere. “We have so many comforts in modern life, but we still need to get back to the primal needs of exercise,” Maughan said. It’s not just ultramarathons that get his blood pumping. “One of my greatest achievements was to summit Mount Everest from the Tibetan side utilizing the North Col/Northeast Ridge route,” he said. “It was a tough and dangerous two-month project that I have no shame in admitting scared me.” He also climbed Aconcagua in Argentina’s Andes mountains, plus Denali in Alaska — where he fell while descending the summit ridge. “I’m proud of what I have achieved, in work and play,” Maughan said. “There was no luck — you make your own luck — and at the end of the day, it is simply hard work, honesty, and sometimes sacrifice that will get you up the ladder. Success in any field is no more complicated than that.” Freezing Hot will be available in July on Amazon.