The 34th edition of the Langdale Marathon & Half took place at the weekend in typically blustery autumnal Lake District conditions. The Langdale Marathon has a reputation as the toughest road marathon in the UK, but despite this it is a must-do event for many runners, particularly those based in the north.

The course takes in the Great Langdale and Little Langdale valleys with 360° views of the surrounding fells. There are some steep climbs with gradients reaching 1:3 in places! The stunning route is what helps attract both seasoned runners and a large number of people looking for their next challenge.

This year saw some 500 runners take part across both distances. In the marathon event first place was claimed by Alan Hilley in 02:59:14, he was followed by Alex Cowin of Penny Lane Striders in 03:03:41 while third place went to Hugh Watkin of Ripon Runners in 03:07:04. 

Over in the women's marathon race Helen Knight of CLC Striders claimed victory in 3:34:06 with second place going to Katherine Cousins of Lancaster & Morecambe AC in 3:39:20 and third place to Emily Taylor of Tri-Force in 4:02:17. 

The half marathon event was won by Oscar Subuh-Symons of Dorking & Mole Valley in 01:17:16, he was followed by Beau Smith of Lancaster & Morecambe AC in 01:25:15 and third podium position went to Sean Warburton of Salford Harriers & AC in 01:26:59. Theresa Oldroyd of Harrogate Harriers won in the women's event with a time of 1:42:23, Emma Kearsey of Helm Hill was second in 1:44:40 and third place went to Fay Carter of South Shields Harriers in 1:45:27. 

Speaking after the race action ended, organisers commented: "Well done to everyone who ran today. It's an incredibly tough course and you have all done yourselves proud." Someone who was clearly feeling deservedly proud was Deborah Jefferies, who commented on Facebook: "Thanks so much everyone. I felt honoured to have my own sweeper car as I closed the race. The real heroes of the day organisers and marshals deserve a huge round of applause. Thanks for all the love today you are all amazing!"

While Simon Sparkles added: "I really enjoyed this race yesterday sure was tough 1 but also it was brilliant the views were amazing I will be back next year thanks guys."

If you would like to know more you can visit the Brathay Challenges website. 

Image: Brathay Challenges/Jumpy James Photography & Web