Author Archives: Mark Dawson

Ultra Trail Mont Blanc TDS race

Posted on September 17, 2023 by Mark Dawson

Ultra Trail Mont Blanc TDS Race 2023. From Courmayour in Italy to Chamonix in France. Normally 145km (90 miles) but extended with bad weather route to 153km (95 miles). 9,300 metres ascent (30,512 feet). Finishing time: 43 hours 55 minutes … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 5 Comments

Ultra Trail Mont Blanc TDS race

Posted on September 9, 2022 by Mark Dawson

The TDS race is a 146km race on the more mountainous trails around Mont Blanc than the normal UTMB route, and has an ascent of 9,100 metres. For this reason it is widely regarded as a harder race than the … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 2 Comments

St Cuthbert’s Way 100km Ultra Marathon

Posted on July 11, 2022 by Mark Dawson

St Cuthbert’s Way Ultra Marathon 100km from Melrose to Holy Island Time: 19 hours 24 minutes and 55 seconds Ascent 8,067 feet. I was more than a little worried about completing this race after missing four weeks of training because … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 7 Comments

Tinto Hill Race

Posted on November 3, 2019 by Mark Dawson

This was one of my first hill races from back in 2013, so I was looking forward to doing it again six years on. We met up at the Penicuik Centre at 12:00 to see how many cars we’d need. … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 1 Comment

UTMB CCC race 2019

Posted on September 6, 2019 by Mark Dawson

Ever since running the longer ultras I’ve been keen to use the ITRA points for a UTMB race. I’ve done a few that are 4 points each, and to enter the UTMB Mont Blanc CCC race you needed 8 points … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 6 Comments

Scottish Mountain Marathon – Mark and Julian’s 2 day race

Posted on June 10, 2019 by Mark Dawson

The Scottish Mountain Marathon has taken the place of the previous orienteering marathon run by LAMM (Lowe Alpine Mountain Marathon). After looking into all the kit requirements for this race I was not going to take part, as you need … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 3 Comments

Glen Ogle 33 Ultra Marathon

Posted on November 9, 2018 by Mark Dawson

Glen Ogle 33 is an Ultra marathon that sets off from the McLaren Hall in Killin. It’s roughly 33 miles in a figure of eight through beautiful forest trails and cycle tracks. There’s a long switchback section in the centre … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 3 Comments

Lakes in a Day Ultra Marathon

Posted on October 23, 2018 by Mark Dawson

I entered Lakes in a Day after watching aerial clips from a previous year on Facebook. The runners were crossing the mountain ridges in brilliant sunshine with outstanding views. I had heard it was bad weather last year and knew … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 8 Comments

Wooler Trail Marathon

Posted on November 21, 2017 by Mark Dawson

I’d heard this long twenty eight and a half mile trail marathon was a tough route over the Cheviot hills in Northumberland. It’s organized by Trail Outlaws who also run the St Cuthberts Way amongst quite a few other races, … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 3 Comments

Ochil Ultra Marathon 2017

Posted on October 2, 2017 by Mark Dawson

It was during my training for the Devil o’ the Highlands down on holiday in Wiltshire that I heard about this new Ochil Ultra marathon. I had had a few good runs around the New Forest and along the canals … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 14 Comments

Devil O’ the Highlands Footrace 2017

Posted on August 8, 2017 by Mark Dawson

I was surprised to get in as there’s just 300 places for this very popular ultra. Jan also got a place, so we quickly booked our accommodation at Strathfillan Wigwams as they are just 3 miles from the start. It’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 6 Comments

Snowdonia Marathon race report

Posted on October 31, 2016 by Mark Dawson

It’s a hard marathon to get into as it goes on sale at midnight on Hogmanay and sells out really fast, within 12 hours this year. It was voted the most beautiful marathon at some point and it prides itself … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 6 Comments

Edinburgh to North Berwick Road Race

Posted on May 6, 2015 by Mark Dawson

I thought this would be a great training run for the Edinburgh Marathon as many people had mentioned. I’d just done the London Marathon six days earlier though, so I was making sure to run it as a training run … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 2 Comments

London Marathon 2015

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Mark Dawson

It was a long time coming after eight knock backs from the ballot, but I thankfully got a place through the club this year! I think with this in mind I was much more worried about getting injured, but managed … Continue reading →

Posted in Race Reports | 2 Comments

Yorkshire Marathon 12 October 2014

Posted on October 19, 2014 by Mark Dawson

The Yorkshire Marathon took place for the first time last year. I’d heard it was a great race and sold out within five hours, so booked the pre-sale website option when I got a link about it. Many people had … Continue reading →

Posted in 10k Road Race, Race Reports | 3 Comments