Man vs Horse
(22 miles)
14th June 2008

The Man v Horse Marathon began in June 1980 following a chat over a pint in the Neuadd Arms Hotel in the smallest town in Britain. The then Landlord, Gordon Green overheard two men discussing the relative merits of men and horses. The enterprising Gordon, never one to miss an opportunity to promote Llanwrtyd Wells and improve business at his hotel, decided to put it to the test. And so began Green Events and its first and longest standing, now Internationally acclaimed event, The Man versus Horse Marathon. The race starts in the Town Square and is run over a 22 mile course through some of the finest scenery in Mid Wales using a mixture of farm tracks, footpaths, forestry roads and open moorland. There are a few short distances over tarmac. It is very hilly with a total ascent of 3000 feet and several river crossings. It took 25 years before a man finally beat a horse; Huw Lobb (Beds and County) won the 2005 race in 2hrs and 5mins beating the fastest horse by 2 minutes, and £25k richer!

This years race winner was a horse and rider; Geoffrey Allen riding Dukes Touch of Fuw. The 9 year old Arab Cross crossed the finish line in 2:18:13, closely beating the fastest man, John McFarlane, whose time was 2:18:38. I was very pleased to finish in under 3 hours for the first time, and with all but the first three riders and horses crossing the line behind me. However with the horses starting 15 minutes behind the runners another 6 beat me on adjusted times. Cliff Smith also achieved a PB on the course and this stands him in good stead for his Marathon des Sables revenge in 2010. Viv Kilgour finished a few minutes later and we then enjoyed our success laying in the sun watching other runners and riders struggle up the final steep hill to cross the line.

Dave Holt

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