Sunday 9th March 2025 ☀️

A magical race report by Charlie Long:

An early morning alarm meant the lovely Annette and I were up and out, on our way to Steyning, in time to witness a beautiful sunrise on what was promising to be a glorious, sunny spring day….perfect for a jaunt on our beloved South Downs.

We assembled at Steyning Grammar School, where we were  very efficiently directed to bag drops, number collections and the changing facilities that brought back some slightly triggering memories of school PE days (I am not a naturally athletic type….if my old PE teacher could see me getting up pre-6am to go running they’d get quite a shock!!)

The start was understated, a couple of flags and a suggestion that we could get going. The route and scenery was most definitely not understated. We set off over farm fields before reaching the first of the ascents through woodland. Annette and I, along with her fellow ultra running buddies Michelle and Helen, deployed our “walk the ups and run the rest” strategy from the start, I don’t think we were the only ones treating this event as a supported training run for our various upcoming ultras. This gave us ample time to enjoy the spectacular views as we climbed through the trees before emerging out into the wonderful sun and reaching Chanctonbury Ring.

From Chanctonbury, we had a fantastic descent to Cissbury Ring, where we took on the extra loop round the ring that made up part of the marathon route. We were grateful for water top ups, Mars Bars and vegan jelly babies on offer as we went off on our way. Round the ring, passed lots of dog walkers and golfers and through some more wonderful, wooded trails that were perfectly springy underfoot – it really was perfect running trail!

Cissbury Ring ticked off and just one extra little loop for us marathoners before the final ascent back up to the top of the South Downs Way. “Hula Hoop hill”, as it got named thanks to Michelle’s pack of hula hoops shared amongst us (not sure she knew they were communal until she opened them!), took us back up Steyning Bowl and rewarded us with yet more spectacular views across the South Downs and down to the sea. An extra special treat at the 23.5 mile point was the sighting of a flock of Herdies!!! I bloomin’ love Herdwick sheep, normally found in the Lake District and perfectly adapted to living on the fells, in exposed, harsh conditions. They happen to have the cutest, smiliest of faces and I may have stopped running to take a photo or two, or maybe more! Photos taken, sun shining and there was just one long, sweeping descent through the trees between us and the school where we were rewarded with more Mars Bars, a wooden medal, a shower and a cooked breakfast.

A solid run done and more miles banked for our ultra training, over a fantastic Downlands course, in perfect running weather, with great company and a meal at the end. Oh, and did I mention the Herdwick sheep? If Carlsberg did running events…….

🎤 What a day you all had and what glorious weather ☀️ A great report that feels like we were right there with you and the 🐑 😂 Thank you 🫶