Mark Hetherington
“If not now, then when?” That was the tag line on a whole load of posts about the Dragon’s Back Race that kept dropping into my SoMe feeds back in 2023. Still fairly new to ultra running, I had had a fairly quick progression from my covid-year solo round in the KRS Ultra course, onto a hundred miler the following year and other races both in Norway and the UK. But this race was something different… it freaked me out in a way I could not explain… a 6 day stage race across the mountainous welsh landscape… how on earth was I going to manage that??
Epic films, daily video blogs, a history of the event across different podcasts with a well known cast of mountain runners having been out trying to slay the dragon. Reports from Thomas Øderud who ran into an impressive 2nd place at Ourea Events other stage race, Cape Wrath Ultra and a venture across their Northern Traverse myself…I seemed to be filling my thoughts with the possibility that this could be my next big project.
And then, a message out of the blue from Glenn Hove, asking if I had heard about a race called the Dragon’s Back? Was it a sign? I felt the excitement surge through me! Yes I had! And I would register for it if he came along as well… “I’m in!” came the response… and that was that…2024 would be the year I would attempt to slay the dragon!
So, a brief explanation: The Dragon’s Back Race is a multi stage race of 380 km from North Wales running all the way down South to Cardiff across the mountains over six days. You start at 6:00am on Monday at Conwy Castle and you finish on Saturday at Cardiff Castle.
Training, kit and preparation may well be a blog I come back to later (as it is an area that actually went well). All I will say is that it can always be better… but it was more specific this time round and with Valle Skyrace 2 weeks before the event, I felt that I had fairly good legs, even though the sleep prep was not optimal.
In the months leading up to our trip to Wales, we had managed to entice another Norwegian to the event, and when Glenn met Jørgen Wilthil on their expedition across the DNT Massiv route, we joined forces and made this a trip where all 3 would join forces & support each other. We booked the same flights, planned to stay at the same hotels and opted for a tent together while on the event. It was going to be tough, so better to do it with friends.
Ok, a little on the kit, as it is important to understand the dynamics of the event. We were required to purchase an Ortlieb 59l dry bag that would be our camp bag for the whole duration of the event. It could weigh max 15kg and would be weighed at registration on a calibrated scale. In addition, we were required to have a 10l Ortlieb dry bag as a drop bag each day. It could weigh 2,5kg. Everything for the hill would come in addition. It may surprise you that packing these bags was not easy! Sleeping mattress, sleeping bag, running clothes, cold weather kit, hot weather kit, camp clothes, plates and cutlery weigh a fair amount, but add to that all nutrition you will need for 6 long days of running (no food at the support stations) and you will easily find yourself over 15kg in weight and pressing the top of the bag down to squeeze everything in!
However, after chucking some stuff out and rationing my nutritional supplies, I checked the weight on the calibrated scales at DHL and, bingo, we were there! Now it was just a case of getting there, another stress moment produced by SAS cabin crews striking days before we were due to fly. Taking no chances, we all armed ourselves with a 4,500NOK flex ticket with Norwegian to Manchester, to avoid having to jump in a car and drive 24 hours through Europe if the shit hit the fan! However, strike averted and money flexed back to us…we were off!
We met on route to the UK and Glenn, Jørgen and I flew to Manchester on Friday before the race. We planned to have a good amount of time to mentally prepare for the race before donning running shoes in Conwy. It was also time to have some good sleep and eat some meat, as Ourea events are vegan events. A dinner at Bem Brasil in Manchester showed that Glenn needed this, pleading with the scary looking South American waiters for more steak more often that they are even used to. I even managed to see Jon and his family, eating some well planned and cooked steak and then experiencing some new beers at his local craft pub ‘Reasons to be Cheerful’. 😊 Sunday afternoon, we started the journey down to Conwy, to check into the Premier inn at Llandudno Junction and get our first taste of the event at registration, kit check and race brief!
After train cancellations and a brisk jog for a new train in Crewe, not really knowing where we were going but following others carrying Ortlieb bags, we arrived at kit check and registration. This would be my first taste of the no-nonsense side of the event. I failed kit check based on my waterproof trousers. Apparently my Salomon Bonatti waterproof trousers only had taped seams on the front and my kit checker got very caught up in this, failed me and forced me to buy the heaviest pair of Regatta waterproofs I have seen. Jørgen referred to them as the type nursery workers in Norway use when they are out watching the kids play in the rain… never needed them the whole week but duly forked out 25 quid for getting past this first gauntlet. Glenn also had issues but it was nothing a bit of cash in their shop couldn’t solve… we had paid enough to get to this point, so why not splash out a bit more?
Atmosphere soaked up, drop and camp bag delivered, race brief attended, it was time to (try to) get some sleep before heading to the start line at Conwy Castle at 5am the following morning! Our local hero, Nia came and collected us at 5am, driving us to the castle. Nia ran Northern Traverse with Glenn earlier in the year and was great to get to know, sharing her knowledge of the event and first parts of the course with us. The weather was meant to be awful on day 1 so it was nice to get some local insight into how it would be.
Now it was time to tackle the Dragon slaying!
Day 1: Conwy Castle to Nant Gwynant – 53km / 3900m
One of the magical things about his race is the sense of grandeur in what you are doing and how you are going to achieve it. As we all piled into Conwy castle, we were presented with a Norwegian flag that Nia would duly wave for us as we set off towards the mountains. A Welsh male voice choir’s beautiful tone broke the hush of excitement and the nervous energy like a well oiled welcome to Wales video. A moment of joy as someone proposed to their girlfriend, before we were set off through the castle gift shop and walls on our way towards the first climb!
Day 1 was always going to be a challenge. Not only are there 380 runners on the start line, but running over 50km with nearly 4000m of elevation with fairly tight cut offs is not to be messed with. However, we managed to break into a decent pace out of the castle and when the heavens really started to open with the forecasted torrential downpour, we were working up a decent sweat at a decent pace. Both Jørgen and I made the decision that no waterproofs were required!
The first morning took us on a gradual climb from sea level, up over 1000m visiting the summits of Carnedd Llewelyn and Pen Y Ole Wen before the steep decent to the support point in the Ogwen Valley. I ran it all with Jørgen as we shared the trail and started to cement a great friendship, getting to know each other in the way only an ultra really allows! It was about here that the weather started to clear up, as we looked down towards the check point valley, the clouds parted to reveal the next climb, Tryfan.
Leaving the support point a bit before Jørgen, I took it easy up the climb, feeling I would need to conserve energy through the day. I was just approaching the first point of the day where we would have to ditch the poles and start to scramble when Jørgen came up the hill behind me. Nice to be able to share some climbing with him as we pushed up to over 1000m again. The scramble was fun…not that difficult but an interesting first for me. I got into a good group over the top and maybe started to let my guard down a bit…a sly comment about how I no longer trusted Salomon grip with trail running shoes… and a misplaced right foot resulting in a very uncomfortable ankle roll! SHIT! Not on day 1! Not already! No, this was not going to define me and my Dragon’s Back experience!
I took a painkiller and put to work the mental side of what I had trained for. We were now not aiming for a time or placing in the race, but we were going to finish and have fun! How? I was not quite sure , but that was the aim and I was damn well going to achieve it!
Taking it easy, I let a load of people through on the next shingle climb up Glyder Fawr, but one guy stuck with me… Sam (with a beard) seemed to be also having a tough day, but having attended the race before and not succeeding, was now determined to succeed. We would keep each other company for a large chunk of the rest of the day! Lets face it, the most challenging part of the day was still ahead.
Leaving the water point, the signs point to the highest summit in the UK outside of Scotland, Snowdon. But we wont be taking the tourist routes as we must complete the whole horseshoe, including the scramble up and over the ridge of Crib Goch. Luckily as the mist and rain had fallen, I joined a train of people including one who had traversed Crib Goch 5 times, with the last time being about a week prior. Follow her and we would be OK.
I found the climb OK really. The exhilaration came from the fact that I had feared it for so long. Having seen videos and pictures of people running along the ridge on a clear day was a very different experience to my climbing through the mist and then hanging on tightly across the top. But this was a first for me and one that I enjoyed immensely. The various scramble parts between Crib Goch and Snowdon were tough but fun and were actually parts I could do without pain in my ankle.
Reaching the end and the climb up to the highest summit of the week at Snowdon offered another surprise… the café was open! I bought a coke and proceeded to waddle down the other side. Not long to camp, I kept thinking… but it was and the slog was a long one. The worst part of this last section was the final decent. You could see the camp in the valley below, but as I was behind a few hundred people, the hill was steep and had been turned into a mud bath! No idea how many times I fell, but each time I did, my hand landed in a thistle, or I would smash my arse on a rock… anything to keep my mood fairly tempered by the dragon! (Have a look at Gary House’s insta post on this descent…)
Safely into camp as the final “Nordmann” in just over 13 hours, I headed to the tent. Glenn had smashed it and Jørgen had also had a good day! I was pleased for them but needed to turn the focus on myself. Off to the river to wash, then to get my bed ready, clothes into the drying tent before getting some food down me… a ritual that would be repeated each day, but one today that was necessary to get right. I taped my ankle and prayed for a good start on Tuesday. We all got our heads down early and had fallen asleep before out 4 other tent mates had made it into camp. Alarm set for 04:30 the next morning, it was going to be some important shut eye.
Day 2: Nant Gwynant to Dolgellau – 61km / 3500m
Still in Snowdonia, this was also going to be a tough day. After getting up at 04:30, we soon realised we were amateurs at this Ourea morning routine. Breakfast was served from 05:00, but the queue was formed already at 04:45! We tried our best to get things sorted, packed down, eaten, warmed up, kit check and bag dropped before 06:00, but ended up a good 5 minutes late to the starting pen…not to matter, it was the time you start at that counts, not the early 6am start that was so imperative.
Running out on the first bit of asphalt from camp was almost a relief… my ankle was well strapped and not hurting at all. What a result. Things seemed to be on the up! We quickly went through some gentle trails before heading into single file for the climb up into the Pant Mawr Slate Mines, coming up and over Cnicht in the beautiful sunshine! Then it was time for something I had heard about in the vlogs… the ass sliding bit… and yes it was necessary as there was no way you would want to run down there without looking like you were training for the Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake.
The day continued much more amicably then day 1 with better weather and some enjoyable climbs. Reaching the top of Moelwyn Mawr, I switched back to see Jørgen coming up to join me. But I was feeling good, so carried on running. Down through the technical decents towards the overgrown valley and I managed to misplace my foot a bit again. Not as bad this time, but enough to take a breather and let Jørgen through.
We followed through the valley and gently up the next climbs after the water point. I realised that I had been busy talking for so long that I had forgotten the climb and was having a good time heading up and over the next summit. Not long to the support point at Cwm Bychan before we were heading into the Rhinogs.
A few tough climbs up into the Rhinogs and some fairly technical sections filled a fair amount of the afternoon, but it was getting better and I was actually having fun. I seemed to have a better day nutritionally, and had a good intake of tailwind, along with some carb intensive gels from Precision and good salt balance. So when we came out onto the road part at the end of the day, I was feeling pretty good! It was here that I spent the first long section with our other Norwegian friend, Jostein. We ran a fair bit on the road down from the mountain before he declared needing to walk in the steepest parts. I was fine and kept a steady jog all the way into camp… how lovely it was to have 10km covered in about an hour!
Camp would offer showers today, but they were a long walk away… why bother! We had a freezing stream. Nature at its best!
Day 3: Dolgellau to Ceredigion – 67km / 3200m
Day 3 braced a new morning routine for me. I was going to make sure that I was in the starting pen at 6am. The distances were getting longer and a less stressful morning would make for a better day in the mountains. Standing ready in the breakfast queue at 04:50, it meant I could finish breakfast by 05:20, pack up my stuff, go through kit check and get out on time. It was a routine that would work for me the rest of the week. I had also taped up my ankle again in an attempt to make sure that we wouldn’t have any more accidents in the coming days. So I put on the same wet Nnormal Kjerag running shoes that I had been so pleased with the first few days and headed out at 6.
Day 3 had 2 things I was looking forward to: climbing Cadair Idris where the giant Idris was said to have had views over the whole of his kingdom and the famous Co-Op in Machynlleth! We headed out of camp and through Dolgellau before we started the climb up to Cadair Idris. Unfortunately yesterday’s weather had not hung about and we were in for a morning of fog and lack of views… The climb itself was nice and gentle, if a bit muddy, and when we came out on the other side of Idris, the clouds started to clear and we were able to see out west towards Bamouth and Cardigan Bay.
Running through Abergynolwyn Café at the water point a received a message from Thomas… someone who had wished me good luck and promised he wasn’t following along “Not stopping for pasties?” read the message. No, I was pressing on as I felt good and my mind was fixed on the shop at the support point. Over the next summit was kind of ok, but on the way down into Machynlleth, I started to feel a real pull on my right achilles. Strange as I have never really had achilles issues before. However, it was obvious that I had over-compensated with the tape and pulled too hard on the back of my leg/ankle, putting extra pressure on the achilles. This could be fixed, but probably not before coming into camp after ca 40km.
Running into Machynlleth, the leaders came flying through. Impressive to see the pace that 2014 World Champion Max King had as he raced past. And what a nice guy… always lending a positive word to those he ran with or passed… a real inspiration in both running and being genuine and nice! Into the town centre, dodging the regulars on market day in this beautiful welsh town. A bit out on the road, then back on the pavement, swerving to avoid pensioners buying their sausages from the butchers wagon… On to the end of the village and there it lay… Co-Op!
I had been dreaming of the restock here and was straight in to get some food for eating straight away, as well as 3 small bottles of coke and 2 big cans of red bull! 300m to make sure I didn’t drop it to get to the support point and pack most of it in the drop bag (where I had gambled and made space by removing my spare shoes for the day). Sausage roll, sandwich and a coke later, I hit the trails again, heading into the Cambrian mountains of mid Wales. It felt like an easier afternoon and once getting over Pumlumon Fawr, it was easy going, joining forces with 2 strong competitors running a good deal down the mountain and into camp. Another day improving times and getting faster and better. Time to sort out my taping and hope for the best the next day!
Day 4: Through the Elan Valley – 69km / 2300m
I kind of saw day 4 as a transport stage, moving from one mountainous area to another. Yes, with 69km of running and 2300m of elevation, it was not going to be a walk in the park, but the worst of day 1&2 was done and day 5 needed some decent charging of the batteries and a full body check before embarking out on SAS’s training ground, The Breacon Beacons.
We moved out through some nice rolling hills and terrain and this was the first day that I had really felt good about things. The body was working well and having removed my ankle taping, I neither had ankle or achilles issues. What a result. I kept the running going through a lot of gravel sections and then together with Jørgen who was also having a good day, we managed to catch Glenn, running together as a trio for the first time in the week! Moving through the Elan Valley and then some of the days only climbs, we were graced for the second day in a row with a low level flying display of the US Air Force F-15 fighter jets! I had been told by dad to look out for these and while I was slow with my camera, another hill walker had managed to get a great shot of them and had it displayed proudly in the national newspapers…
The last 18km of the day today was mainly on road… a pain in the ass for some people, but something I could embrace today as my legs were working and I had found a new hobby: Overtaking the Hatchling-ers.
A brief explanation needed. If you didn’t make a cut off or had to retire from the main dragon race, you had the opportunity to stay with the group and move to the hatching, doing a half distance each day. This could either be the first part of the day or the second… When the Hatchling participants were bussed to the halfway point to run to the finish, we would effectively be chasing them down, and it gave a real mental boost to be able to run past so many people, especially when you knew they had not run as far or long as you either…
Running down the long final hill into camp, I was informed that there was a pub on the other side of the bridge to camp… and as I was so early in, I actually had good time to get my admin done before going over and ordering a (meat) burger and pint of coke. As I did, the heavens absolutely opened! I mean, I felt sorry for all other competitors out on the course, including those I knew, Jørgen and Jostein among them. Space was a premium under the plastic roof of the pub garden, and I was joined by a fellow runner. He had decided to join the burger eating but also taken a Guinness! Oh sack it, I joined him with a beer and made the most of a natural pause in the race! A good choice and one I do not regret 😊
Day 5: Into the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) National Park – 73km / 3400m
The longest day of the week and one that still manages to ruin many people’s Dragon’s Back Race. But that was not going to be the case for me. I was quick off the mark today and found myself out in a group of 4 at the head of the race (for the day… the quicker runners had to leave camp later). We ran together and while I will leave some details of this part out, managed to get to the famous bakery in Llandovery just before 8am. The other 3 stopped for something sweet while I decided to press on and get some peace on my own, climbing out of the valley into the Bannau Brycheiniog.
Reformed as a group of 3 (our dutch friend had danced off with his music 😉), we were briefly stopped by Race Control at the Usk Resevoir, as there were reports of lightning on the next summit. 5 minutes to move around water and tailwind bottles and we were allowed to get going with a warning of what to do if there was lightning (I was the only one of us with hiking poles). Luckily the summit of Fan Foel was only marred by wind and fog, but no lightning. I sprang down the sherpa steps and left my running mates behind, venturing out into the head of the race again through the mud and towards the days support point.
Arriving as the first runner at the support point was strange but with the afternoon’s climbing I knew I would be letting people through soonish. The Beacons are a strange commodity. They are steep up and down but grassy and muddy in the conditions we encountered them. However, not seeing the tops meant I had no idea of how much climbing we needed to do, and that was a help. Up and down 4 times before reaching the water point and starting the tourist trail up to Pen Y Fan. As I approached water point I was asked by someone from Ourea events how I was doing and captured in the blog as saying that the last climb had broken me… Not necessarily broken but close to it.
The sun had come out to play, so I stopped at the river crossing at the base of Pen Y Fan. While most tourists went across the bridge I took off my pack and immersed myself in the water! Bliss… Now just to haul myself up the climb, a few more up and downs and into camp to celebrate breaking the hardest day. It was a bit more arduous than that, but the scenery was majestic and we were blessed with good trails, punishing climbs, quad busting descents alongside great ultra conversations and laughter.
The final section running into camp was a tough wooded section, where I managed to fall off the trail and into the river as I attempted to put my poles back in my quiver, but I didn’t care as I was nearly in camp and that was the victory I was looking for today. 1 day to go and that was just “downhill to Cardiff Castle”. Easy eh?
Day 6: To Cardiff Castle – 65km / 1300m
This was meant to be easy, literally a walk in the park… and it all started ok. The gentle climb out of camp and into the last part of the Beacons was a nice start to the day, as was the run over the hills, being scared by wild horses on the gallup and cows blocking the path, before heading down to asphalt and villages on route to Cardiff. If Courtney Dauwalter’s pain cave normally maifests itself on a long mountainous 100 miler, I encountered a new version on the cycle paths and tarmac of south Wales.
I am not going to go into too much detail about the pain on this day, but I do honestly believe it is the worst I have encountered in a race. Running down the hill to the support point about half way, I had tears in my eyes from the continuous bashing of the feet and legs on the hard surface, arriving at the checkpoint and trying to keep it together, especially as the local news crews with broadcast camera were there.
However we pushed on and through the pain, running some, jogging some, walking some! The main takeaway from today was a sense of pride and achievement. We had been informed that there was another race happening in the area, using parts of the same route, just the other way… and they knew who we were! Every time you ran past someone, they we cheering you on, and while they had their own 30miler, they wanted to praise us with what we were doing. I felt a huge sense of accomplishment and pride in my adventure, that soon was coming to an end.
The route could well have just followed the road and lower level all the way to Cardiff, but the organisers have done a great job in making sure that it was interesting, pushing us over a few of the southern summits and hills on our way to the outskirts of the capital. And then it was into the parks and along the Taff Trail towards the castle. Running through the suburbs, watching young Welsh teams playing Saturday rugby matches, people out on a family walk and for the first time all week, a sense of coming back to civilization. And what was amazing was how many knew what we were up to and cheered us on. The race seems to be known through the whole country and whether we came from the local valley or the other side of the world, it was important to them to cheer us to the finish.
The distance never really seemed to reduce and as hard as I tried to not look at that detail on my watch, the taff trail just went on and on… but eventually, it wasn’t far left and as I noticed more intense support, Cardiff Castle appeared around a corner. I ran down the side and in through the old gate of the castle walls. Met by music and my name on the PA, the crowds who had come out to welcome friends and family to the finish, cheered me on. Keep it together man… but the tears were pretty evident. This was a huge accomplishment and I was proud beyond belief, crossing the line as the first of our ‘Norwegian’ group on the final day, I had done my part and beaten the Dragon!
Getting my stuff together and grabbing an all important finishers beer I started to soak up the atmosphere and appreciate the surroundings! Glenn followed a short time after and I could see on his face as well that this final day had both had an emotional impact, but also pushed him to a place he hadn’t been before pain wise! We had booked the Holiday Inn about 200m from the castle, but armed with all baggage and a broken body, it took us way more time than we had envisaged to waddle down the road. After a quick shower, I went back to welcome Jørgen and again enjoy watching what this journey through Wales had meant to him.
We all joined the final night celebration and prize giving in the castle grounds and over a few beers, managed to release some thoughts of what we thought and how this event had planted itself in our achievement books, both physically and emotionally. I think I will come back to that last point, when I have been able to compute those thoughts… yes, there will definitely be a new blog with key takeaways… But right now, I am still in pain, still in awe, still grateful for being able to partake and complete this event.
But I also have a new appreciation for what this event and the sport of ultra running can give. I travelled to Wales with 2 people who I either knew a bit, or not at all. But through this race, they have become great friends for life! We have developed an understanding and friendship which is built in the valleys of camp-life and supporting each other. We have shared laughter and pain and come through so much stronger as a result. And others who I met on the way… I feel I owe them a thank you, for supporting and encouraging. We all got through this together!
I finished the DBR in 69 hours, 12 minutes in 38th place overall! 380 people started the Dragon’s Back Race in 2024 and 124 finished. I am one of those finishers who slayed the dragon and mighty proud of it!
