THE iconic Man versus Horse race has made it onto a list of “weird and wonderful” running races in the UK, compiled by Runner's World.
The global monthly magazine and website has named the bonkers race, one of the most popular events on the annual Powys calendar, in a list of seven other madcap races you can run throughout Britain.
Two other Welsh races make the list, Race the Train, in neighbouring Gwynedd, and the Barry 40-mile Track Race in south Wales, while the Green 26.2 Mile is also included – a marathon that takes place inside an abandoned prison.
Man v Horse event pits man/woman against beast, with over 1,000 runners taking on 60 horses and riders over 21-22 miles of punishingly steep and unforgiving terrain, on the roads and in the hills, bogs and forestry tracks surrounding Llanwrtyd Wells.
The legend of one of the most quirky sporting events anywhere on the planet was only heightened when a human won the race for just the fourth time in 42 events this year.
Daniel Connolly finished the race in a rapid two hours, 24 minutes and 38 seconds in scorching temperatures on Saturday, June 10 – beating the first horse home by almost 10 minutes.
That made it back-to-back wins for man after Ricky Lightfoot won in two hours, 22 minutes, 23 seconds in 2022 – beating the first horse home by two minutes and one second.
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This year the runners took on a 21.5-mile course which included a brutal total ascent of 4,097 feet, while the course for the horses and riders was slightly longer at 22.04 miles and slightly higher, with 4,186ft of ascent.
For relay teams the course was split into three legs of 7.38 miles (1,458ft ascent), 7.23miles (1,413ft ascent) and 6.50 miles (1,226ft ascent).
Huw Lobb was the first human winner of the race in 2004 – on the event’s 25th anniversary – followed by Florian Holzinger in 2007.
The origins of the event date back to June 1980 and a heated chat in the back bar of Llanwrtyd’s Neuadd Arms Hotel. Then landlord, Gordon Green, overheard two men discussing the relative merits of men and horses running over mountainous terrain and whether a man could actually win in a race.
Gordon decided to put it to the test. And so began Green Events and its first, longest standing and now internationally acclaimed event, Man v Horse.
The course was amended in 1982 to provide a more even match, resulting year on year in very close finishes – sometimes with the horse winning by only a few seconds.
The escalating jackpot for a runner who beats the first horse and rider starts at £500 and increases by £500 each year the event takes place until it is won. 2005 winner Lobb took home a £25,000 jackpot.
The other six races on the Runners World list include:
Green 26.2 Mile
The only marathon run inside a prison in the world is a 78-lap race through A wing and B wing of HMP Shepton Mallet in Somerset.
More than 100 runners turned up to take part in the first race in 2019 at the prison, which was the UK’s oldest operating prison when it closed in 2013. Each lap contains 123 steps, so it’s not really one for a PB.
Race the Train
An annual cross-country running event that takes place in Tywyn, Mid Wales. Runners compete to beat a steam train on the preserved Talyllyn Railway over a distance of 14 miles (23 km).
The full race is from Tywyn to Abergynolwyn and back. Only elite runners stay ahead of the train for the full distance, with the train stopping in various locations to take on water, pass other trains or to run round at Abergynolwyn, which allows runners to overtake.
The World Coal Carrying Championships
Each year men and women race the streets of Gawthorpe, near Wakefield, carrying huge sacks of coal.
The event consists of men’s, women’s and children’s races that take place on Easter Monday. Men carry 50kg of coal and women 20kg in weight over the 1,012 metre course, while the children’s race is 150m.
The Great Knaresborough Bed Race
Held in North Yorkshire, where, since 1966, competitors in fancy dress take part in a gruelling time trial over a 2.4-mile course, ending with a swim through the icy waters of the River Nidd – all while pushing a four-wheeled hospital bed.
Run Alton Towers
Held at the UK’s biggest theme park, Alton Towers, in Staffordshire in November, the race offers 5k, 10k and half marathon distances around the park – with free ride access after the race included in your entry fee.
The Barry 40-mile Track Race
A 40-mile ultramarathon which takes place annually in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, claiming to be the longest running annual ultramarathon in the UK.
The race was first held in 1986 and is organised by Les Croupiers Running Club, taking place at Jenner Park Stadium.
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