Travelling to every one of the 272 tube stations in one fell swoop is a feat in itself, but walking them in a day? Surely that's impossible.
Not, if you're a 120-strong group of teens who've divvied the Underground up into 27 walkable sections — such is the plan of participants of a 'Tubeathon' taking place this Sunday (25 February).
The ambitious event is the brainchild of 17-year-old Eitan Okrent from Finchley. "No-one has ever tried to walk the full length of the tube map in a day, and I'm sure it sounds a bit crazy," Eitan says, "But I’ve always been somewhat obsessed with the London Underground."
Indeed, London Underground-themed missions are nothing new for Eitan; in 2023, he narrowly missed scooping the coveted tube challenge record, in which people ride the network in the quickest possible time.
The Tubeathon — as well as involving the same meticulous planning — will also call for significantly more legwork.
It's not all for glory though; says Eitan: "The tube covers so much of London, which means that participants will be seeing areas of London they may never have been to before — or, better yet, will have only seen underground."
And all participants are being sponsored too, with money raised supporting Lives Not Knives, a charity working to prevent knife crime, serious youth violence and school exclusions. If you'd like to donate, visit the Tubeathon JustGiving page.
The tube lines have been walked before, and by one man — it was made into a brilliant book by Mark Mason, Walk the Lines, although there were 'only' 270 tube stations back then, and he certainly didn't do it in a day.
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