Last Sunday, November 22, Thomas emerged victorious in Monaco in the kind of race normally referred to as intense when enjoying the luxury of a car. Even without such comforts, Thomas was first to complete the 24 hour race and was subsequently presented with the 'No Finish Line' trophy by HSH Prince Albert II.

Having competed in his first marathon in 1996, Thomas concedes his running has taken on something of a "A life of its own," as he made the progression to ultra marathons.

Thomas competed in his first ultra marathon in 2005 (39.3 miles) and the following year represented Ireland at the 100km world championships.

The sport of ultra running is relatively new in Ireland with Thomas pointing to those countries where it is more established as an example.

"It is fairly new here, it is very big in Russia, Japan and the States. We're trying to make a name for ourselves and it's becoming more established. For example Helena Crossan from Donegal won a bronze medal at the World Championship s this year," explained Thomas.

Talking about the number of events he has competed in this year, Thomas joked, "I probably went a bit overboard this year. It should be only one event a year."

So far this year Thomas has competed in a 100km event in Galway, a 126km race in the Namibian desert; a 100km race in Enniskillen in June and last week's 24 hour race in Monaco in which Thomas emerged victorious.

Talking about the preparation that goes into such events Thomas revealed as opposed to a conventional marathon runner who would run in the region of 18kms in the weeks coming up to a marathon, he was running between 28 and 45kms in the weeks prior to his gruelling events.

Perhaps not surprisingly Thomas was feeling slightly fragile when speaking to the Leitrim Observer after last week's exploits and he is hoping to have a scan on his knee before the end of the year.

Joking about the demands exerted on the body by the punishing events, Thomas said, "Your mind is writing cheques your body can't cash!"

A common complaint amongst marathon runners is the dreaded 'wall', with many attempting to describe the agonising feeling of hitting 'the wall'.

Thomas explained, 'the wall' isn't a particular concern, adding it is "A more progressive thing and you have low moments."

Helping him overcome those low moments in Monaco were the goals he had set himself, primarily posting a quick enough time to qualify for next year's world championships which will be held in Brive in May 2010.

Having had "A very good 8-12 hours, where I was traveling fairly well," Thomas was able to switch his attention from posting a quick time to catching those in front of him.

The experience of two unsuccessful 24 hour races stood to Thomas as he was able gauge the pace to suit his style.