Beacon butties for all!
Ditchling is a high point for 461 in the Maverick East Sussex trail races
Less than an hour's drive from the City of London lies the South Downs Way in Sussex, one of 15 National Trails in England and Wales and a spectacular venue for the Maverick Adidas Terrex Original East Sussex trail races in Brighton. The South Downs Way is the only National Trail to lie entirely within a designated National Park.
This year's event was held on Saturday 23 July from the University of Sussex in Stanmer Park and all three routes took in Ditchling Beacon, the third highest point on the South Downs National Park at 248 metres above sea level, with commanding 360-degree views towards London in the north and to the coast in the south.
There are three race distances on the Maverick Adidas Terrex Original East Sussex programme described as Long (23K; 401m elevation gain); Middle (15K; 314m) and Short (5K; 119m) so something for all levels of ability and experience. There is even a hugely popular dog category, which was the first to sell out.
It was the longest distance that attracted the largest field, with 222 finishers in 3:39:14. The winners were Samy James (1:39:39) and fourth-placed Penny Brook (1:43:15) – respectable times for a road half marathon, let alone another 2K and the length of a running track to climb!
The Middle race saw Patrick Maher (1:09:43) and Ellie Cookson (1:10:28) take the top two places and 180 finishers in 3:35:45.
The 5K Short sprint also had a male and female one-two with Chris Downing (24:33) just holding off the first woman Laura Reilly (24:36) in the final dash for the line as 59 finished in 1:45:59.
Maverick trail events continue on Saturday 3rd September with a switch to the North Downs for the Tribe Maverick Run Free Marathon+ with races from 11K to an ultra-marathon 52K from Cranleigh Showground in the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
For details of all Maverick events visit the official website here
For a link to results from Maverick Adidas Terrex Original East Sussex visit runABC South race listing
Image courtesy Maverick Race gallery