Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 27

Thread: Ultra Trail Snowdonia

Hybrid View

Previous Post Previous Post   Next Post Next Post
  1. #1
    Master Travs's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    NE Lakes/Coventry
    Posts
    5,256

    Ultra Trail Snowdonia

    Anyone else got this new race on their radar for May 2018...?

    It's organised by Michael Jones who I understand is a very good mountain ultra runner, won the Lakeland 100 and placed highly in lots of other stuff in the UK and abroad.

    There's a 50 and 100 mile race. The 100 mile race includes approx 39000ft of ascent and no less than three visits to the summit of Snowdon, along with Moel Siabod, Carnedd Llewelyn, Glyder Fawr, Y Garn, Elidr Fawr, Moel Eilio, Moel Hebog, Cnicht, Lliwedd... 50 hour time limit. The 50 mile race is the 2nd half of the 100 mile race.

    Looks an absolute beast. After a good year long-distance wise in 2017, I've taken the plunge and signed myself up for the 100 mile race.

    In terms of stats it's basically 2 x 10 Peaks long course. Although the advantage of an early evening start means at least having a full bank of sleep to start with, instead of around 3 hours on the 10 Peaks, but obviously means running through the night (two nights actually in my case, should I make it that far).

    There's no entry list as such that can be viewed at the moment, but I understand the entries will be capped at around 300 across both races. Whether they'll get that many entries due to the difficulty, and being a new race, I'm not sure, but I believe a good number have already entered.
    Last edited by Travs; 25-11-2017 at 09:13 AM.

  2. #2
    Master
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Cumbria
    Posts
    2,088
    To pricey for me £1 a mile is my limit, should make for a good day out and I will bear the route in mind when I am stuck for ideas of where to spend a weekend .
    However good luck with it

    All being well and if I can cope with the logistics I actually have a pretty long jaunt planed for next May, more of which next year if I think it is a goer.
    Last edited by JohnK; 26-11-2017 at 08:23 PM.
    The older I get the Faster I was

  3. #3
    Super Moderator
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    The Worth
    Posts
    17,254
    Full sounds a very tough undertaking, but then who wants to just do a fun run?

  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by Derby Tup View Post
    Full sounds a very tough undertaking, but then who wants to just do a fun run?
    Me please Miss!
    "...as dry as the Atacama desert".

  5. #5
    Master
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Cumbria
    Posts
    2,088
    Quote Originally Posted by Derby Tup View Post
    Full sounds a very tough undertaking, but then who wants to just do a fun run?
    Says the course is fully marked so for me the lack of the need to navigate would take away a lot of the fun.
    The older I get the Faster I was

  6. #6
    Master Travs's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    NE Lakes/Coventry
    Posts
    5,256
    Quote Originally Posted by JohnK View Post
    Says the course is fully marked so for me the lack of the need to navigate would take away a lot of the fun.
    I saw this, but certainly won't be taking it for granted. I'm no RO, but I fail to see how they can guarantee that a fully marked course over 100 miles, won't be tampered with over the course of 48 hours on a busy Snowdonia weekend...

    I'd also prefer unmarked, but the physical challenge still remains quite considerable... (bit of an understatement!)

  7. #7
    Master
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Cumbria
    Posts
    2,088
    Quote Originally Posted by Travs View Post
    I saw this, but certainly won't be taking it for granted. I'm no RO, but I fail to see how they can guarantee that a fully marked course over 100 miles, won't be tampered with over the course of 48 hours on a busy Snowdonia weekend...

    I'd also prefer unmarked, but the physical challenge still remains quite considerable... (bit of an understatement!)
    Wise move never take anything for granted in any race of any distance.
    The older I get the Faster I was

  8. #8
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Posts
    275
    Quote Originally Posted by JohnK View Post
    Says the course is fully marked so for me the lack of the need to navigate would take away a lot of the fun.
    Some issues never go away - such as the navigation v marked course issue. In reality they are not comparable. A marked course means that everyone is tested against exactly the same course. It becomes a physical test - a pure race.
    A fell race requiring navigation tests a different set of skills - though I don't think I have actually ever seen anyone navigating in a fell race.
    A mountain marathon tests a different set of skills again.
    Some formats definitely test a wider range of skills, though I'm not sue this makes them betteror more or less fun.

  9. #9
    Master
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Cumbria
    Posts
    2,088
    Quote Originally Posted by MarkL View Post
    Some issues never go away - such as the navigation v marked course issue. In reality they are not comparable. A marked course means that everyone is tested against exactly the same course. It becomes a physical test - a pure race.
    A fell race requiring navigation tests a different set of skills - though I don't think I have actually ever seen anyone navigating in a fell race.
    A mountain marathon tests a different set of skills again.
    Some formats definitely test a wider range of skills, though I'm not sue this makes them betteror more or less fun.
    Yep I know what you are saying as I have done both marked and unmarked courses, however I have always found unmarked courses preferable to marked not least of all because I know where I am at any given point and that I am not following markers that may have been tampered with and I do like the fact that an unmarked course can even out the field, in as much as a marginally slower runner that can navigate better than faster one may just be able to take a better line and put themself on a par with the faster one thus giving the faster runner the satisfaction of having to push themselves harder which in turn makes for a keener race.

    Every Event I have ever done (and I have done several )has always been done on sight, as I find that the hours spent poring over maps and then putting my understanding of the route into practice on the day makes for a complete experience for me at least.


    As to unmarked v marked making for a pure race, that has not been my experience as I have in the past beaten folk on marked courses that have beaten me in the past on both marked and unmarked courses and of course vice versa.

    Of course as you will appreciate in an ultra race it is not just about a physical race, there is also a very big mental race that has to be played out by each competitor in order to get through the lows, not to mention the the ability to overcome sleep deprivation if the event is long enough to take you into a second day,

    TBH it is all pretty much what floats your boat a and I am glad that UTS went well and was enjoyed by you and others.
    Last edited by JohnK; 14-05-2018 at 04:25 PM.
    The older I get the Faster I was

  10. #10
    Hello all!

    Just came on to the forum to talk about the race, but seems word is already out there about it so I'll just answer the above questions. Please feel free to look around on my site too or visit my Facebook page by searching UTSRACE.co.uk

    Price: I'll admit not the cheapest race in the UK, but justified now I've added up all my costs. I'll probably still only break even in the first year as I have to buy a LOT of equipment to make this happen (course markers for example: £1500+).

    Entries: I've taken 90 in nearly 5 weeks which is great and gives me some confidence that this will sell out as I'll be capping entries at 100/200 between the distances.

    Course marking: Fully appreciate people preferring to race on an unmarked course, it'd certainly make my life a lot easier! But this isn't a nav race. I want it to be fair for everyone and do my best to eliminate local knowledge advantages etc. Think that's best left for Fellrunning IMO and there are other ultra races in the UK that are unmarked if that's your thing (Paddy Buckley Round too?). I hope to attract an international field in future and they're used to racing on marked courses. Also helps me in terms of competitor safety and event liability.

    Markers: Quite right, I cannot guarantee markers won't get tampered with, so all competitors must carry map and compass as a backup, as well as possess the ability to use them, should they need to, due to the nature of some of the terrain the course covers. The markers are there to act as reassurance you're on the right track, more details on the matter are on the website!

    It's basically the event I always wished for in the UK and with that amount of climbing is not to be taken lightly. I'm always open to feedback so if you've got any questions please feel free to email me directly: [email protected]

    Hope some of you can make it!

    Mike

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •