LISTEN: One event, many goals, but they will all run until they drop

Friday 11 August 2023

At 9:00 tomorrow runners will set off from Sylvans in the Donkey Drop, they all want to go as far as they can.

For some that will mean battling sleep deprivation to still be going 24 hours later.

There is also a twist. They have an hour to complete the 4.167 mile circuit, which includes lanes and trails around the Reservoir, and be back on the start line to begin again.

You must start every hour and it means a real tactical battle will unfold with mind and nutrition playing just as much of a role as fitness.

Just over 60 people have entered the event which is being hosted by Distance.gg.

“They just keep going until there's one runner left,” said Distance.gg Treasurer Dave Watson.

“The hope is that the race will last well into Sunday.”

If anyone makes the 24 hour mark, they will have covered 100 miles. Others will target 12 hours to get to 50.

Some look for seven laps so that they have covered an ultra.

It might be that covering a half marathon is the goal.

The route starts at the Sylvan's training pitch, uses some green lanes and nature trails to the Reservoir, going round and back up past the West Legion and back to the football club.

Ideally, competitors will be looking to doing each lap in 45 to 50 minutes to leave time to get food and get ready for the next lap.

“If you're not in the starting circle, you miss it by a second, you're out. There's no leeway. That's the only hard and fast rule," said Mr Watson.

More than half the field are new to the event.

“It’s an unknown territory for them. So we’ll have runners going off far too fast and blowing up. We’ll have the experienced runners walking out the gate, because realistically you can walk half the course and still finish within the hour comfortably. It’s about learning to pace yourself.”

Distance.gg chairman Steven Marquis thanked Guernsey Water and their wildlife warden for their help.

“We have a leave nothing but footprints approach,” he said.

“So we’ve adjusted the course so as not to disturb the wildlife when it comes to dusk. The race is starting relatively early, so we think around 12 hours in we will be down to single digits. By doing that we can limit our impact and carry on using the beautiful trails.”

There is a zero tolerance approach to littering during the race.

You can listen to the full podcast below: