Race date: 6 August 2025

Race distance: 11.3km with a fairly hefty 400m climb

Race report by Matt Broadhead

I decided to do this Hayfield race after I did the “three days in May” and realised that if I did one medium and one long (Groovy Kinder Love incoming hopefully) I’d qualify for a t-shirt. I’ve done this race before, and I remembered there was a chippy in Hayfield, so I set off early after work with the plan of having a pre-race fishcake butty.

Things got off to a poor start when I discovered the chippy is no longer open on Wednesdays. I got a packet of Eccles cakes from the shop and retreated to the car park to fuel and chat to some other runners.

The first kilometre is a fairly steep climb on trail before things level out a bit, then a sharp left brings on another climb. At this point it turned out half a packet of Eccles cakes doesn’t constitute an evening meal, and I ate the gel I’d brought with me.

A nice long downhill section followed, giving me time to recover a bit, and then it was left uphill and along the edge of the old stone quarry that gives the race its name (contrary to popular belief it’s not named for the sea monsters that used to live there). This leads up to the highest point of the race, and the beginning of the long descent to the finish. Unfortunately, the poor food plan got me again with a couple of calf cramps, but I managed a semi-creditable sprint finish.

This is a lovely course with fantastic views and I’d do it again, I just wasn’t in great form today.

The race was won by Tom Perry (Dark Peak) in 43:13 and by Amy Whelan of Buxton in 52:10. 203 ran.

Striders result