Race report by: Hannah Wright
Race date: Saturday 26th June 2025

Well the day finally arrived for Beyond Manchester. I booked this race nearly a year ago after completing Beyond Newcastle. 

After learning a few lessons from last year I booked a hotel near the finish/start line with a bath and a bar. The start/finish was in the Castleford area of Manchester. 

I was in the first wave starting at 8am. After the race briefing we were promptly on our way. Bit of drizzle to start with but it soon cleared. My race strategy was to break the race down per checkpoint which was approximately every 9 miles. There was 3 checkpoints each offering an array of food and hydration. I wanted to make sure I had enough time banked in case of getting lost or injured (which neither happened). 

Miles 11-14 hit me hard mentally. It was a long flat narrow segment which just seemed never ending. Soon after I met another runner from Leeds who was worried about getting lost so we teamed up to give each other support to the next checkpoint. 

After checkpoint 2 moral was high as a runner from Sheffield joined our team. Between the 3 of us we took turns pacing and navigation was spot on. Part way through this section we met a guy out for his afternoon stroll who incidentally runs marathons. He either felt sorry for us or enjoyed our banter but he took over pacing, navigation, tourist information about the area and got us safely to the next check point. 

We made it to the final check point with plenty of time to spare and approx 8km left to the finish. At this point our pace had slowed but conversation and determination was at its highest. This final section took us back into the hustle and bustle of Manchester – we must have been a strange site to the city folk after returning from the trails and it took us a while to adapt to crowds of people. 

What felt like the longest last few km we eventually made it back. Across the finish line we went. Collected our medal, beer and snacks whilst watching other runners cross the finish. It’s was fun catching up with other runners from wave 1 at the finish – some got lost, some got injured, some missed their train – but we all finished. 

At this point I very much appreciated the short walk back to the hotel where I got have a bath with a face mask and dine at the hotel restaurant. I was a bit chuffed when I checked my Strava and got a new 50km pb. 

Striders results: