Newsletter - Round 2 The Welsh Ultra Running and Trail Marathon Series

Not sure what you guys think but we may have to think of renaming the “Summer 40”! 

We certainly weren’t short changed when it came to the weather; high winds, big rain, sharp hail, thunder, and a smattering of sun thrown in for good measure were all part of the course. With the wind-chill below freezing on the high ridges there were several retirements along the demanding 40 mile ultra course particularly at the 22.5 mile mark near Storey Arms. The challenge saw 129 starters lined up ready to go of which 112 determined athletes would survive to see the finish line.

Nevertheless Hugh Aggleton showed everyone else a clean pair of heals finishing in a remarkable time of 6 hours 17 minutes and 35 seconds. The only other competitor to break the 7 hour barrier was Patrick Devine-Wright in 6:58:50. Duncan Steen took third spot with 7:04:20. First male veteran (over 45 years old) took 5^th place overall in a time of 7:17:00.

In the women’s race Katie Roby didn't have it all her own way running in third and second place during the day but demonstrated her endurance by coming through to claim the women’s top spot in a time of 7:41:00 and finish 15^th overall. Lizzie Wraith took second and Natalie Taylor third. Natalie was running as part of team Endurance Life warming up for an Adventure Race later in the year in Costa Rica, I use the term warming up with some irony. First 'Lady of a certain age' was Lynette Porter in 8:03:00 who finished 20th overall.

In conditions as they were, finishing is no mean feat so give yourselves a pat on the back  and check out the full results here.

Trail Marathon runner Andy Watkins braved similar conditions for the majority of the route and brought the field home just outside the 5 hour mark in 5:04:00. First lady home and 5^th overall was Belinda Manning in 5:25:00.

Full Trail Marathon results here.

We are also in the process of working out the series scores as they stand after two rounds, to qualify for a series placing you must complete 3 rounds. If you complete all 4 then your best three scores count.

There are several fantastic blogs and reports on our Facebook page of which a lot can be learnt for future events so may well be worth having a read.

Despite the fact we’re sure the day will be etched permanently in the brain for some of you there are some fantastic photographs captured by our resident photographer Jon. These may be viewed here and purchased at a very reasonable price to ‘treasure’ the moment forever!

We would also like to say a big thanks to GU Energy for providing enough gels to keep you going and also Vivobarefoot for providing the winning prizes and making sense of Barefoot Running. If you need any more info then get in touch and we’ll gladly send out some info.

We’ll have a bit of a summer break now from the running events but we do have 2 Adventure Races on the calendar with the 2^nd and 3^rd rounds of the Welsh Adventure Race Series on July 27^th and September 14^th with 6 and 12 hour options. If you fancy mixing it up either as a solo or as a team with mountain running, mountain biking, canoeing and a bit of navigation thrown in then check out the races here. Any questions give us a shout as always and we will do our best to help you out. We are also checking dates to find some free weekends for a couple of trail running training weekends.

Keep an eye on our FB page for latest news, offers and general going's on!

Thanks for coming and hope to see you soon,

The MCN Team