Keswick Mountain Festival 25K & 50K, 18th & 19th May 2024
Whilst most of the country were happy to see the sun come out over the weekend, it didn’t create ideal conditions for a long distance run in the Lake District! So, a very well done to the two Claremont Road Runners who took part in this year’s Keswick Mountain Festival. Jim Crinnion ran in the 25K event on the Saturday and Jenny Roberts tackled the 50K ultra run on the Sunday.
Jim kindly sent this report:
“Arriving on Friday afternoon to collect race number for the following day, the sun was already shining brightly and most runners were hoping the forecast of hot sunny weather for the weekend would be replaced by weather more commonly experienced in the Lake District in May.
Unfortunately Saturday turned out to be a very hot and sunny day with temperatures edging towards the mid 20 degrees C. With the 25k having a 11am start time, the run would take place over the hot midday period. Starting and finishing at the festival site at Crow Park it wasn’t long until the first climb began. As with many trail runs, the going was slow in places with steep climbs, difficult descents and technical rocky single tracks, which made overtaking near impossible. The first half of the race contained most of the elevation with the second half being more undulating, following the lake shore paths back into Keswick and finishing back at the festival site.
The race was advertised as a trail half marathon but the total distance actually clocked in at slightly over 16 miles. The weather was great while spectating but, added to the terrain when running, made it a challenging course. The three drinks stations, the second two of which also had a selection of snacks to refuel, were all gratefully received in the warm weather. The course was tough and took longer than expected to complete, but the views made it all worthwhile, just about!
Keswick Mountain Festival hosts a variety of activities over the weekend including hikes, trail runs ranging from 5k – 50k, bike rides, swims and triathlons. On top of that the festival site has a range of exhibitors, activities, live speakers, live music and beer tasting, there really is something for everyone. For anyone interested in attending next year, the scorching weather, which accompanied the 2024 festival, can’t be guaranteed, but the stunning setting and scenery can be.”
Jim finished in 80th position in a time of 2:54:38.
Jenny was 148th in her event in a time of 8:44:28.
