Race Date: Sunday 13th July 2025

Race Report by John Liddle

The Eight Stations Ultra is a new c.30 mile race created by Charm Bracelet Trail Events which takes in as the title suggests, eight train stations between Whitby & Pickering. I (John Liddle) and Caroline Brash were the sole Striders representatives and neither of us can recall why we entered ! We suspect that red wine was involved at some point.

Possibly as we both had Spring marathons in the diary, we had thought at the time that an extra few miles would be easy ? and as it was an Ultra with walking actively encouraged, it would be straightforward…….we’re still not too sure.

Communication prior to the event from the organisers was first class. This included a 4 page briefing document, helpful What Three Word details for key locations throughout the route, mandatory kit list and a 98 bullet pointed route description as well as the associated maps. Even a slightly amended route was sent a few days before the start including the corresponding GPX download which showed you the way (note to self, these can be downloaded to a Garmin device and there is no need to purchase Ordnance Survey maps !).

Given the one-way direction of the race, we both took the option of booking the coach alongside other runners to reach the start line. With a 6am departure time for the coach, we assumed only a few others would have joined us and were surprised to see c.100 eager & excited participants in the car park of the local sports centre in Pickering who had opted like we had for the early start. The coach took us on the scenic journey up to Whitby in order that we could check-in at Whitby Leisure Centre – we arrived at 6:45am, in readiness for the 9am start (the organisers have accepted that the 6am start was too early and have said that next year, it will be later).

Neither Caroline nor I had completed an Ultra before and indeed, trail / cross country running is something which isn’t usually on our race list. We immediately noticed that before you could obtain your number, people were being asked to empty out the contents of their rucksacks as part of a kit check. Our thoughts to remove the spare clothes and wet weather gear (given the 30 degrees weather forecast) was hastily changed, especially when more experienced ultra runners told us that checks can be made en-route as well and disqualifications occur if anything is missing. As it happens, all we had to show was our emergency foil blanket and with that safely back in the rucksack alongside our whistles, we spent an hour or so chatting to other runners. We noticed quite a few Barnsley & Rotherham shirts and ended up sitting next to a couple of other Sheffield runners who like us, were first time ultra entrants.

It was a short walk to the start on The Cinder Track and alongside what appeared to be a few hundred people, we all eagerly listened to the final briefings and confirmation of the check points and snacks available. This pleased us greatly !

At 9am we set off. At 9:02 we stopped as getting several hundred people through a gate (one person at a time) a few hundred yards from the start takes a little time. We had both agreed to go slowly as for various reasons, little (ok, zero !) training had taken place although we hoped that as the marathons were only 6-7 weeks previously, this meant that our legs were still sort of ready for long runs. Our plan was to walk quickly on the uphill bits and try and gain some time when we could…….

The first few miles involved running on trails, across fields and through a couple of pretty villages. There was an occasional climb but it was more undulating and when the first checkpoint came into view at around 5 ½ miles, we were both feeling quite pleased with ourselves. We certainly weren’t at the tail and after restocking water supplies and eating a flapjack, we set off again making our way to Goathland. The odd woodland trail with the shade from the trees provided welcome relief from the sun which was already feeling very hot on the more exposed parts of the route. The 2nd checkpoint at 11 miles provided similar goodies, including watermelon and oranges – the volunteers manning these positions throughout the day deserve a massive thank you.

After this checkpoint we then headed onto open moorland and faced a few miles of a steadily uphill climb with views of RAF Fylingdales in the distance. We walked purposefully however and noticed that the people around us at the first checkpoint, were still around us, they were walking too and finding it tough. We passed through the psychological half marathon point…..then halfway and into Pifelhead Wood. Downhill is faster right …..?? not in a wood when you’re holding onto trees to keep your balance, walking gingerly to stay upright (post the event, we heard that one of the Sheffield runners we had been chatting to at the start, fell in this part of the wood and whilst they finished, they ended up in York Hospital having 12 stiches in a face wound as well as having a broken rib !). And of course, what goes down also goes up as well and we exited the wood climbing almost vertically (there was a rail to help you haul yourself up) and back onto moorland searching for Checkpoint 3 at 19 miles on the edge of the Hole of Horcum.

We chatted to a couple of runners from Northampton for a few miles as we approached the next feed station who told us that this was a training run for them……..normally they run 70-100 mile Ultras. Maybe one day ……..for now, the legs were starting to become tired after all the climbing and 30 miles was going to be plenty for us.

Another brilliant feed station, water topped up again and we set off for the final 10-11 miles, down into the Hole and back up the other side heading for the final checkpoint at Levisham around 23 miles. Fields and stunning views greeted us almost at every turn and in hindsight, we could have spent longer enjoying the views. Having thought that the Eight Stations Ultra would be a simple run along an old disused train track, it was anything but. I’d lost count of the number of stations we had passed at this point but when they did appear, they all were in excellent condition with the tourist steam trains benefitting from the wonderful weather and seemingly doing brisk business.

We departed the final checkpoint, confident in the knowledge that we’d only c.10k to go, how hard can that be ? VERY it turned out. Despite the route being ever so slightly downhill, the path was covered by knee-high grass which made anything more than walking difficult. When the opportunity occurred, we did move into what felt like running fast (in reality probably 11-12 minute miles !!). This however brought other challenges and both of us lost our balance at different points, ‘cartoon like’ stumbling forward attempting not to fall face first. Given these challenges, I’d like to point out that absolutely zero swearing took place and we positively laughed when a locked gate appeared before us at 27 miles……. I mean, who doesn’t like climbing over a 5 bar gate when your legs are dead…..the steep path which followed this point may have been preceded by an odd comment or two !!

We were though onto the last few miles and soon the outskirts of Pickering appeared. We tried to shuffle (big thankyou to Peter Brash for supplying more water at this point, it was gratefully gulped) and although we knew where we were heading, the route for the last mile rather than sticking to pavements, took us through more trails and climbs to really test our patience. The Sports Centre though was around one more corner and in the late afternoon sunlight, the two representatives of SCS crossed the finish line….and were immediately awarded their finishing medal and t-shirt. We were ULTRA RUNNERS !!

We had never completed 30 miles before, we had never run/walked for such a length of time before and yet despite battling the heat and the sun, climbing almost 3,500 ft along the way, we achieved a new notch on our running exploits. We sat inside the sports centre, drained, shattered, emotional and happy. We retired to the weekend house which Caroline & Peter had rented and sat outside in the evening sunshine, drinking jugs of bitter shandy – we felt like champions !

As we drank, other runners continued to pass at regular intervals, it suddenly dawned on us that we didn’t do badly at all, especially given our lack of experience at such an event. We were happy though that we would never have to do an Ultra again…….. unless we wanted to (the algorithms on my computer are seemingly providing me with a range of options currently !!).

The Eight Stations Ultra took place on Sunday 13th July.

Link to the Charm Bracelet Marathon: Eight Stations Ultra Page

Full results are available on the Open Tracking website

First finisher was Jen Thompson (F) in 4:45:00

First male finisher was Ian Stevens in 4:51:06

251 runners started, 12 retired – 239 finished.

Striders Results