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New UK Ultra Running Championship

Rob Howard / 25.02.2006

The UK has a new Ultra running championship sponsored by Montrail, which includes some classic events like the Fellsman and the Long Mynd 50 and has over £7000 in cash and equipment prizes on offer.

The idea was the brainchild of Mark Hartell who had seen the popularity of US and European races and felt the time was right for a UK series linking existing races. (There are thirteen 100 mile races in the U.S. alone and many are included in the Montrail Cup there.)

Having persuaded Montrail to back the idea here, he’s had a positive response from the race organisers and put together a programme of 12 of the best mountain and trail events of marathon distance and beyond, spread around the country from Galloway to the Cotswolds, and from the Yorkshire Dales to mid-Wales.

Hartell hopes the new series will promote the sport in the UK and provide a framework to encourage more runners to participate. To that end the races are divided into Short (26-31 miles), Medium (33-40 miles) and Long (41 miles +) categories and to get a series ranking runners have to score in 4 of the 12 races, completing one in each category. There are prizes for the best scores within each category and also age group and spot prizes. So lots of prizes!

The geographical spread should make it easier to take part, and the races are also well spread throughout the year, so it’s possible to score points even if you miss some of the early races.

You can see all the details on the new website www.runfurther.com, where there is a full list of races, plus race and racer profiles. You can also register for the series via the site.