The Berghaus Dragon's Back Race Gets Underway

Rob Howard / 22.06.2015

The 3rd Berghaus Dragon’s Back Race started at 07.00 this morning in the majestic setting of Conwy Castle on the North Wales Coast.

It was an early breakfast today in the YHA cafe with the racers either more than usually chatty or quiet and pensive, all dealing with the nerves in their own way. Soon enough it was time to get busy and get the race bags (day bags and camp bags) down the car park by the castle, which was only a short downhill walk away. Here they were loaded into the right vans and all the racers then gathered inside the castle entrance and gift shop, crammed in to keep out of the cool, damp wind while they waited to move up to the castle.

It may have been mid-summers day yesterday but for the race start the marshals had on all their Berghaus kit, including warm hats, and the weather showed just how fickle it can be. After they arrived in the castle courtyard and collected their maps it rained for a while, then the sun shone brightly for a bit and by the time they were heading up into the mountains it was raining hard. By this afternoon it’s expected to be hot and humid!

There was a little time to study the day one map while listening to the mellow voices of the local male voice choir.  It is a big map, in size and in the scope of the route, which does not include the Welsh 3000 foot peaks as it did in 2012, but instead takes in the full Snowdon horseshoe route, starting with the knife edge Crib Goch ridge which the runners reach from Pen-y-Pass.

After the start speeches it was time to go, bang on time, and for the start itself the sun shone for a few minutes. For this year the runners were allowed to jog along the fortified town walls and the race timing began as they left the wall and set up hill, back past the youth hostel to start their epic run across Wales.

You can follow the live tracking for the race at http://www.dragonsbackrace.com/live-tracking/

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