Extreme runners seen in Wendover High Street

In most towns and villages in the UK, 135 people clad in running gear and a visible coating of mud, running up the High Street would have been a bit unusual. On Friday 10 November, that was exactly what happened.

The Druid’s Challenge is a 136km (about 85 mile) ultra run along the Ridgeway. It involves 2,203 metres of ascent and is completed in three days – so it is roughly equivalent to averaging more distance than a marathon every day for three days.

We spoke to Rowland Gadsden who was a marshal near the gate to St Mary’s church in Wendover. Twice in the past he had been a participant in the run, but this time, decided that being a volunteer was more sensible for somebody nearing 70!

“Many of the early runners went straight through, so I didn’t get much time to talk to them. I had a good chat with a lot of them though – they were all very friendly folk. I moved onto other checkpoints on Saturday and Sunday. I was touched by the fact some of them stayed at the checkpoint until their spouses came through to check that they were OK. They were all very inspiring.” one of several organised and managed by Extreme Energy Ltd, a company based in Wendover.

Most of the 135 starters completed the course and provisional results showing that Nathan Montague finished in 11:16:07. Rebecca Perrett finished in 14:16:57.

The Druid’s Challenge run is one of several organised and managed by Extreme Energy Ltd, a company based in Wendover.