Two new events for your calendar, with the first, the Spine Sprint, taking place when summer events return on Saturday 19th June 2021.
The two new events are the Spine Sprint and the Spine Challenger North, each caters for a different group of runners.
Spine Sprint
The Sprint is an ‘entry-level’ event but with a true Spine flavour. Runners will need to cover the first section (43 miles) of the Pennine Way from Edale to Hebden Bridge in under 18 hours..Â
Race Director Phil Hayday-Brown commented: ‘The massive support we saw for the Virtual Race in January convinced us that there is a place for a Spine event that caters to those who are ready and eager for a taste of the Spine but need to work their way up to the ‘big’ race’.
Though a shorter race, runners are still self-sufficient. The organisers promise it will be a serious test of endurance with no more hand-holding for ‘sprinters’ than there is for the starters in the full race.
‘It’s a shorter event but it’s still the Pennine Way’ said Hayday-Brown, ‘so it’s still physically and psychologically demanding and requires a good level of physical fitness, and resolve’.
There will also be a winter edition of the Spine Sprint launching in January 2022.
Spine Challenger North
For those runners seeking a longer adventure, the new Spine Challenger North event will see runners taking on the 160 miles of trail left at the end of the current Spine Challenger route.
Bridging the gap between the 108-mile Challenger and the 268 mile Spine Race itself, the Challenger North starts at Hawes and takes runners along the northern-most sections of the Pennine Way to the finish line in Kirk Yetholm, Scotland. They’ll have 108hrs to complete the course.
The Spine Challenger North will be held for the first time in January 2022. These new events are already open for booking.
Details can be found at https://thespinerace.com/events
