If you’ve ever looked at a big powerful horse and thought ‘I wonder if I can run faster than that four-legged beast over 21 miles?’ then the annual Man v Horse Marathon might be the race for you. There aren’t many races that pit man against beast but this famous ‘marathon’ in mid-Wales does just that, giving up to 600 solo runners the chance to go head to head with 60 horses and riders over a testing off-road course that has everything a trail runner could want. Fancy giving it a go? Before you put it on your marathon Bucket List, here’s everything you need to know about the Whole Earth Man v Horse Marathon.
What is the Whole Earth Man v Horse Marathon?
The Man v Horse Marathon started back in June 1980, as all good but slightly crazy things do, with some friendly pub banter over a couple of pints. Two men were debating the relative merits of men and horse running over mountainous terrain when the landlord of the Neuadd Arms Hotel, Gordon Green overhead and sniffed an opportunity for a wager and a way to promote the quiet little town of Llanwrtyd Wells and improve business at his hotel in the process. So Gordon decided to turn this beery debate into a real world experiment and Man v Horse – the race pitching humans against our four-legged friends – was born.
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The Man v Horse marathon course
According to the official event page the WholeEarth Man v Horse Marathon course is 21 miles long, though a quick Google search brings up other sources around the web that list it as anywhere from 21-24 miles. When I ran it in 2017, according to my Polar M430, it was actually closer to 23 miles. Apparently this yo-yoing in distance happens because the course is dependent on forestry works and so it can change from year to year.
What doesn’t change is the terrain. The Man v Horse course takes runners on an exploration of stunning Welsh countryside along farm tracks, footpaths, across open moorland and tarmac. There are steep climbs, river crossings, woody trails and stretches through the long grass of undulating fields. It’s a race designed to test man and horse (almost) equally with sections where horse riders are forced to dismount that even things up.
I went into the race not really knowing what to expect, after all there’s not much information on the official site about the course to tell you what awaits. Don’t expect elevation charts or detailed course maps, these are posted anywhere. This, I’m told, is deliberate as the organisers don’t want lots of runners heading out to train here on the farmland, so it’s done to minimise local disruption.
However, if you’re thinking of running Man v Horse you need to know that this isn’t an easy run. If you’re a UTMB veteran or a seasoned fell runner you might not flinch at the approximate elevation gain of 4,500+ feet climb but if you’re an urban marathoner lost in mid-Wales for the weekend, the Man v Horse course will feel like a mountain race. There’s more than enough testing terrain to satiate the appetite for even the hungriest trail runner.
This is a deliberately rough and ready race, everything is a little sparse and despite coming up to its fortieth year and its international appeal, it still feels like a very local, low-key event. There are water stations but don’t expect any of your urban city race luxuries like gels, bananas or sports drinks. I didn’t plan ahead of this and the best we got was a local who’d brought one bag of Haribo so I spent much of this demanding race running on empty. I highly recommend bringing your own fuel.
Runners start in front of the Neuadd Arms in the square of small Welsh town, Llanwrtyd Wells, in Powys, mid-Wales, on the Afon Irfon which is just north of the Brecon Beacons. The horses start a little further up the town and to allow for a sensible and safe start – and to create the feeling that you’re being hunted – the runners also go off 15 minutes before the horses.
When the horses finally catch you (I say finally, it took the first horse about 20 minutes to pass me), you might find yourself on a very narrow path with barely enough room for two runners to pass each other, let alone a horse. Runners step to the right and horses pass on the left and if you’re lucky you’ll get a big shout from the rider and the fellow runners who’ve clocked the incoming beast giving you enough time to step aside.
The horses have to stop for enforced vet checks around half way that also gives the runners a little time.
The race finishes very close to the car park and at the end, in a small race village, you’ll be treated to lots of locals dishing up a feast of sandwiches, homemade cakes, biscuits and hot tea. Arguably the best bit of the whole experience!
Has anyone ever beaten the horse at Man v Horse?
As the race approaches it’s 40 year anniversary, the horses remain dominant with only two people having ever beaten the horse to win the race. In fact it took 25 years for the first runner to cross the tape ahead of all the horses. In 2004, Huw Lobb became the first man to achieve that feat with a winning time of 2:05:19, beating the faster four legger by two minutes.
Three years later in 2007 Florien Holzinger chalked up a second win for the bipeds with a 2:20:30 but the humans have been without a champion since. If my maths is right I make that 35-02 to the horses. The take away from this: the odds are you won’t beat all the horses.
However, if by some chance you did manage to overcome the odds and the weight of history, you’d be in for a tidy pay day because the Man v Horse prize money pot grows annually. Each year there’s a £500 bounty for anyone who can beat the horses. If no one does, the pot rolls over and that meant Huw Lobb’s victory earned him £25,000 in 2004. In 2018, there’ll be £2,500 up for grabs.
How to enter Whole Earth Man v Horse Marathon: Entry fees and when to enter
The race has capacity for 600 solo runners, 150 relay runners and 60 horses and riders.
Entries open in early Jan (it was the 6th Jan for 2018) and they sell out fast so you’ll need to get in early. The Man v Horse entry fee for solo runners is £30, relay teams pay £75 and horses and riders pay £40. Though presumably the rider foots most of that bill.
Hit the official site to enter Man v Horse or check out the Man v Horse Facebook Group for details on when registrations are open.
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