Spine Race
The Spine Race is an ultramarathon held over a distance of around 268 miles (431 km) from Edale, England, to Kirk Yetholm, Scotland, along the Pennine Way. Participants are allowed seven days to complete the course.[1] The race has been held annually since 2012. Initially held in the winter only a summer version the Spine Fusion was introduced in 2017. The events are now known as the Winter Spine Race and Summer Spine Race.
The series have subsequently been expanded to four concurrent events held twice a year:
| Event | Distance | Start | Finish | Time allowed (hours) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter/Summer Spine Race | 268 miles (431 km) | Edale | Kirk Yetholm | 168 (winter) 156 (summer) | |
| Winter/Summer Challenger South | 108 miles (174 km) | Edale | Hardraw | 60 | Challenger South was originally called the Spine Flare |
| Winter/Summer Challenger North | 160 miles (260 km) | Hardraw | Kirk Yetholm | 108 (winter) 90 (summer) | The time limit for the summer event was reduced from 108 to 90 hours from 2023 onwards. |
| Winter/Summer Sprint | 46 miles (74 km) | Edale | Hebden Bridge | 18 |
History
[edit]The event was devised by Arctic expedition guides Scott Gilmour and Phil Hayday-Brown.[2] The inaugural race took place in 2012 when there were only three finishers from a small field of eleven competitors.[3]
The 2013 event was promoted as the Dare 2b Spine Race[4] but later that year it was announced that Montane would take on sponsorship of the event.[5]
In the 2014 and later editions, participants carried GPS trackers for safety reasons and so that the progress of the race could be publicly followed online as it took place.[6] Starting in 2016, daily video summaries were made available during the race.[7]
Due to the time of year and race location, the majority of the event takes place in darkness. Snow, ice and strong winds are common.[8] Severe weather was a factor in 2015 in particular, when racers were held at various checkpoints for significant amounts of time until it was considered safe for them to continue.[9] Some competitors that year were also redirected between Middleton and Alston to avoid sections of high ground, including Cross Fell, during the inclement weather.[10]
Participants wear or carry mandatory clothing and equipment over the full course and have access to an additional drop bag which is transported along the route for them and made available at checkpoints.[11] Individual support crews for the runners were allowed in the past but from 2018 were no longer permitted.[12]
The 2019 race received considerable media attention when the overall win was taken by British women's fell running champion Jasmin Paris.[13]
Runners were taken by motorised transport between Bellingham and Byrness in Northumberland during the 2022 race, due to many trees on or near that section of the route having been blown down by Storm Arwen. This reduced the course distance by about 15 miles (24 km).[14]
The Summer Spine Race was formerly known as Spine Fusion and is a summer version of the Spine Race, covering the full route from Edale to Kirk Yetholm.[15][16]
Route
[edit]The Spine Race closely follows the Pennine Way but involves some slight deviations such as the access to and departure from the Hebden checkpoint. The runners are not required to complete the out-and-back section of the Way to The Cheviot. Racers generally follow the lower-level Pennine Way route option on the approach to Kirk Yetholm rather than the alternative over White Law.[17]
The route has approximately 13,300 metres (43,600 ft) of ascent. The timing points and approximate distances of the main checkpoints along the route are as follows.[18]
| Location | Distance |
|---|---|
| Torside | |
| Harrop | |
| Hebden | 74 kilometres (46 mi) |
| Malham | |
| Hawes | 172 kilometres (107 mi) |
| Tan Hill | |
| Middleton | 226 kilometres (140 mi) |
| Dufton | |
| Alston | 289 kilometres (180 mi) |
| Greenhead | |
| Bellingham | 353 kilometres (219 mi) |
| Byrness | |
| Hut 2 | |
| Finish | 421 kilometres (262 mi) |
Results
[edit]Winter
[edit]The winners have been as follows.[19]
| Year | Men | Time | Women | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Gary Morrison and Steve Thompson | 151:02:00 | None | |
| 2013 | Eugeni Roselló Sole | 124:52:00 | Annabel Gates | 172:59:00 |
| 2014 | Pavel Paloncy | 110:45:00 | Debbie Brupbacher | 153:17:00 |
| 2015[note 1] | Pavel Paloncy | 81:34:00 | Beth Pascall | 90:59:00 |
| 2016 | Eoin Keith | 95:17:00 | Anna Buckingham and Zoe Thornburgh | 166:38:00 |
| 2017 | Tom Hollins | 99:25:36 | Carol Morgan | 109:54:00 |
| 2018 | Pavel Paloncy | 109:50:22 | Carol Morgan | 130:37:22 |
| 2019 | Eoin Keith | 98:18:23 | Jasmin Paris | 83:12:23 |
| 2020 | John Kelly | 87:53:57 | Sabrina Verjee | 108:07:17 |
| 2021 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||
| 2022 | Eoin Keith | 92:40:30 | Debbie Martin-Consani | 104:08:22 |
| 2023 | Damian Hall | 84:36:24 | Claire Bannwarth | 97:39:58 |
| 2024 | Jack Scott | 72:55:05 | Claire Bannwarth | 92:02:23 |
Summer
[edit]The winners have been as follows.[21][22]
| Year | Men | Time | Women | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Mark Kromeich and Olivier Lidec | 128:54:24 | Stephanie Le Men | 143:59:22 |
| 2018 | Mark Denby | 78:04:14 | Brigitte Daxelhoffer | 131:07:13 |
| 2019 | Esteban Díaz | 89:57:48 | Sabrina Verjee | 81:19:07 |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||
| 2021 | Eoin Keith | 77:34:52 | Anna Troup | 80:28:35 |
| 2022 | Tiaan Erwee | 70:46:50 | Anna Troup | 78:57:49 |
| 2023 | Dave Phillips | 76:59:33 | Jenny Yeo | 101:39:50 |
Spine Challenger South
[edit]Originally call the Spine Challenger, the event is a shorter version of the Spine Race and follows the first 108 miles (174 km) of the route, starting in Edale and finishing in Hawes or in neighbouring Hardraw in North Yorkshire in some years. It starts the day before the full Spine Race. There is also a version of the Challenger specifically for members of mountain rescue teams, held in winter only.[23] [24]
A summer version of the Challenger called the Spine Flare was first held in 2017.[15]
The events were renamed the Spine Challenger South in 2022 with the introduction of the Spine Challenge South in January 2022.
Winter results
[edit]The winners of the Spine Challenger have been as follows.[25]
| Year | Men | Time | Women | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Mark Brooks | 36:30:00 | None | |
| 2013 | Philippe Gatta | 32:18:00 | Anne Green | 53:38:00 |
| 2014 | Marcus Scotney | 29:01:00 | Jacqueline Cooper | 42:13:00 |
| 2015 | Edward Catmur | 29:52:00 | Annabel Cremin | 41:59:00 |
| 2016 | Tom Hollins | 29:25:00 | Beth Pascall | 30:18:00 |
| 2017 | Dominic Layfield | 28:00:28 | Sarah Davies | 37:49:50 |
| 2018 | Wouter Huitzing | 25:42:21 | Emma Hopkinson | 29:39:35 |
| 2019 | Jim Mann | 22:53:28 | Carol Morgan | 31:47:37 |
| 2020 | Douglas Zinis | 29:00:32 | Elaine Bisson | 34:19:05 |
| 2021 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||
| 2022 | Josh Wade | 24:54:50 | Kendra Wedgwood | 46:09:30 |
| 2023 | Rory Harris | 26:25:30 | Sarah Hodgson | 33:26:44 |
| 2024 | Daniel Weller | 24:48:21 | Samantha Lissauer | 33:16:28 |
Summer
[edit]The winners have been as follows.[26]
| Year | Men | Time | Women | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Mark Denby | 23:53:36 | Lisa Wallis | 31:33:56 |
| 2018 | Michael Harrison | 27:45:02 | Beverley Clifford | 35:38:11 |
| 2019 | Benjamin Tyas | 27:38:21 | Saki Nakamura | 32:11:22 |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||
Spine Challenger North
[edit]Introduced in 2022 the Challenger North events start at Hardraw, the finishing point of the Challenger South events, and finish at Kirk Yetholm. A distance of 160 miles (260 km) are to be covered in a maximum of 108 hours (in winter) and 90 hours (in summer).
Spine Sprint
[edit]Also new for 2022 are the Spine Sprint events. Starting at Edale, the races finish at Hebden Bridge, a distance of 46 miles (74 km). The time limit is 18 hours.
Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "The 2017 Montane® Spine Race". Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Weatherised: Team". Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ Mead, Nick Van (22 November 2013). "Montane Spine Race: 268 miles of pain". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Baildon man completes 'brutal' Dare 2b Spine Race". Bradford Telegraph and Argus. 21 January 2013. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "grough — Montane to sponsor The Spine, Britain's most brutal mountain marathon". www.grough.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "The Spine: Britain's most brutal race". www.telegraph.co.uk. 11 February 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Spine Race on Facebook: Videos". Facebook. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "The Spine Race - How Brutal Is It ?". inov-8.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Montane: Montane Spine Race – Day 6".
- ^ "Montane: Montane Spine Race – Days 2 & 3".
- ^ "Spine Race: Compulsory Equipment" (PDF). Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ Keith, Eoin (12 January 2018). "The Spine Race 2018 – Preview". Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "First female winner of 'Britain's most brutal race'". BBC Sport. 17 January 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Eoin Keith and Debbie Martin-Consani win Montane Spine Race 2022". 14 January 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ a b "grough — Runner Pavel Paloncý hits the trail in attempt to beat Pennine Way record". www.grough.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Montane Summer Spine Race Results". Spine Race. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
Summer Spine Race (fka - Fusion)
- ^ "Live Tracking". live.thespinerace.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ Spine Race: Route Description; Spine Race: Live.
- ^ Spine Race: Winter Spine Race Results; Ian Corless: The Spine Sponsored by Montane – Britain’s Most Brutal Race.
- ^ "Spine Legends". Spine Race. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
- ^ "Summer Spine Race Results". The Spine Race. 11 January 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Open Tracking - MONTANE Summer Spine Race 2023 Results". results.opentracking.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "grough — Strongest line-up yet as runners prepare for start of brutal Spine Race". www.grough.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ Willis, Joe (16 January 2020). "Hallucinations, sleep deprivation and finish line tears — runner reveals "brutal" challenge of Montane Spine Race". Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ Hall, Jenny (11 January 2023). "Winter Spine Challenger South Results". Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Spine Race: Spine Flare results". Retrieved 11 July 2023.