Ben Nevis Race

The Ben Nevis Race is a mountain race that takes place annually, from the foot of Ben Nevis (the highest mountain in the British Isles) to the top, then back again. The course is 14 km long and includes around 1,340 metres of ascent. Up to six hundred people may compete in the event.

This article is about the mountain running race. For other uses, see Ben Nevis (disambiguation).

Ben Nevis Race
Date	September
Location	Ben Nevis, Lochaber, Scotland
Event type	Mountain
Distance	14 km
Established	1895
Course records	1:25:34 (M), 1:43:01 (F)
Official site	www.bennevisrace.co.uk

History

Runners line up for an early Ben Race. The starter is on left with a shotgun

1979 Ben Nevis Race

The first timed event on Ben Nevis was in 1895.[1] William Swan, a barber from Fort William, made the first recorded timed ascent up the mountain on or around 27 September of that year, when he ran from the old post office in Fort William to the summit and back in 2 hours 41 minutes.[2] The following years saw several improvements on Swan's record, but the first competitive race was held on 3 June 1898 under Scottish Amateur Athletic Association rules. Ten competitors ran the course, which started at the Lochiel Arms Hotel in Banavie and was thus longer than the route from Fort William; the winner was 21-year-old Hugh Kennedy, a gamekeeper at Tor Castle, who finished (coincidentally with Swan's original run) in 2 hours 41 minutes.[2]

1979 Ben Nevis Race

Regular races were organised until 1903, when two events were held; these were the last for 24 years, perhaps due to the closure of the summit observatory the following year.[2] The first was from Achintee, at the foot of the Pony Track, and finished at the summit; It was won in just over an hour by Ewen MacKenzie, the observatory roadman.[2] The second race ran from new Fort William post office, and MacKenzie lowered the record to 2 hours 10 minutes, a record he held for 34 years.[2]

The Ben Nevis Race has been run in its current form since 1937. It now takes place on the first Saturday in September every year. It starts and finishes at the Claggan Park football ground on the outskirts of Fort William, and is 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) long with 1,340 metres (4,400 ft) of ascent.[3]

In 1955, Kathleen Connochie, was the first woman to finish the course.[4][5]

Rules

Due to the seriousness of the mountain environment, entry is restricted to those who have completed three category A hill races, and runners must carry waterproofs, a hat, gloves and a whistle; anyone who has not reached the summit after two hours is turned back.[6][7]

In 2014 only 600 competitors were allowed to take part, with the limit being set for safety reasons.[8]

In 2016, competitors were asked to stay off the area known as the Grassy Bank, after Scottish Natural Heritage contacted race organisers with concerns about erosion in that area.[9]

Results

Fort William taxi driver Eddie Campbell won the race three times, the first in 1952.[10]

The men's course record was set in 1984, when Kenny Stuart of Keswick Athletic Club won the race with a time of 1:25:34. The women's record is 1:43:01, set by Victoria Wilkinson in 2018.[3][11]

As of 2016 there are one hundred people who have completed at least 21 of the races, each of these athletes has been presented with a Connochie Silver Plaque.[5][12]

In 2019, Finlay Wild won the race for a tenth consecutive year.[13]

The winners of the race have been as follows.[14]

Year	Men	Time	Women	Time
2020	Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2019	Finlay Wild	1:32:05	Sarah Graham	2:12:21
2018	Finlay Wild	1:27:35	Victoria Wilkinson	1:43:01
2017	Finlay Wild	1:31:37	Diane Wilson	2:01:21
2016	Finlay Wild	1:28:45	Sophie Horrocks	1:56:20
2015	Finlay Wild	1:30:56	Diane Wilson	2:00:41
2014	Finlay Wild	1:34:43	Lindsey Brindle	1:56:36
2013	Finlay Wild	1:30:06	Angela Mudge	1:52:40
2012	Finlay Wild	1:29:56	Sharon Taylor	1:59:23
2011	Finlay Wild	1:29:21	Angela Mudge	1:51:14
2010	Finlay Wild	1:35:39	Cecilia Mora	1:56:01
2009	Rob Jebb	1:32:33	Mireia Miró Varela	1:56:46
2008	Agustí Roc Amador	1:29:12	Angela Mudge	1:47:12
2007	Ian Holmes	1:32:57	Angela Mudge	1:48:28
2006	Rob Jebb	1:29:31	Sharon Taylor	1:57:10
2005	Rob Jebb	1:29:22	Sharon Taylor	1:58:15
2004	Ian Holmes	1:29:33	Sharon Taylor	1:55:54
2003	Rob Jebb	1:29:32	Kate Beaty	1:54:52
2002	Andrew Peace	1:29:41	Andrea Priestley	1:52:55
2001	David Rodgers	1:29:24	Tracey Ambler	1:54:36
2000	Ian Holmes	1:28:47	Sarah Rowell	1:54:31
1999	Ian Holmes	1:28:14	Margaret Creber	1:59:21
1998	John Brooks	1:27:24	Kate Beaty	2:09:56
1997	Gavin Bland	1:27:45	Angela Brand-Barker	1:56:27
1996	David Rodgers	1:31:23	Angela Mudge	2:03:08
1995	Ian Holmes	1:28:08	Ros Evans	2:02:07
1994	Ian Holmes	1:30:17	Gill Barnes	2:13:22
1993	Graeme Bartlett	1:33:38	Julie Farmer	2:02:18
1992	Gavin Bland	1:27:02	Carol Greenwood	1:53:25
1991	David Rodgers	1:33:23	Ros Evans	2:03:57
1990	Mark Rigby	1:26:08	Lesley Hope	1:56:58
1989	Keith Anderson	1:27:41	Beverley Redfern	2:03:10
1988	Gary Devine	1:30:10	Sara Taylor	2:05:23
1987	Michael Lindsay	1:29:25	Angela Carson	1:52:57
1986	Colin Donnelly	1:25:48	Angela Carson	1:47:51
1985	Hugh Symonds	1:28:00	Angela Carson	1:52:45
1984	Kenny Stuart	1:25:34	Pauline Haworth	1:43:25
1983	John Wild	1:25:35	Ros Coats	1:45:17
1982	Kenny Stuart	1:27:12	Ros Coats	1:49:22
1981	Bob Whitfield	1:26:57	Ros Coats	1:44:25
1980	Cancelled	---	Cancelled	---
1979	Colin Donnelly	1:31:26	Ros Coats	1:56:11
1978	Billy Bland	1:26:56	Ros Coats	1:53:23
1977	Alan McGee	1:29:56	Joan Glass	2:07:00
1976	Dave Cannon	1:26:55
1975	Dave Cannon	1:29:58
1974	Dave Cannon	1:30:17
1973	Harry Walker	1:29:38
1972	David Cannon	1:32:57
1971	David Cannon	1:33:05
1970	Jeff Norman	1:40:45
1969	Mike Davies	1:43:25
1968	Mike Davies	1:39:29
1967	Bobby Shields	1:41:11
1966	Allan McRae	1:43:39
1965	Peter Hall	1:42:19
1964	Peter Hall	1:38:50
1963	Peter Hall	1:41:45
1962	Peter Hall	1:45:44
1961	Mike Davies	1:47:56
1960	Dave Spencer	1:52:22
1959	Dave Spencer	1:47:53
1958	Dave Spencer	1:46:08
1957	Brian Kearney	1:46:04
1956	Pat Moy	1:45:56
1955	Eddie Campbell	1:50:05	Kathleen Connochie	3:02:00
1954	Brian Kearney	1:47:04
1953	Eddie Campbell	1:53:18
1952	Eddie Campbell	1:53:46
1951	Brian Kearney	1:51:18
1944	Charles Wilson	2:14:19
1943	Duncan McIntyre	2:04:30
1942	Charles Wilson	2:25:49
1939	Daniel Mulholland	2:03:43
1938	Charles Wilson	2:13:30
1937	Charles Wilson	2:17:52

References

1. "Ben race must be scale of the century". The Herald. 3 December 1994. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
2. MacLennan, Hugh Dan (November 1998). "The Ben Race: The supreme test of athletic fitness" (PDF). The Sports Historian. 18 (2): 131–147. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
3. "Scottish Hill Racing – Ben Nevis Race". Retrieved 15 August 2016.
4. "Ben Nevis Race". The Glasgow Herald. 27 August 1955. p. 9. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
5. "Ben Nevis Race marks 60 years since first female finisher". BBC News. 5 September 2015.
6. "Rules". www.bennevisrace.co.uk. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
7. Bob Kopac. "For Sport Alone: The Ben Nevis Race". MHRRC Online. Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
8. Restran, Sue (8 September 2014). "Highland GP wins Ben Nevis Race for fifth time". Press and Journal. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
9. Mason, Callem (17 August 2016). "Athletes warned to 'keep off the grass' in Ben Nevis Race". The Scotsman. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
10. "Highland athlete dies". 4 October 1996. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
11. "Current Record Holders". www.bennevisrace.co.uk. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
12. "Ben Nevis Race is a family affair". Lochaber News. 8 September 2016. Archived from the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
13. The Press and Journal: Fort William GP Makes it 10 in a Row as Sun Shines on Ben Nevis Race.
14. ARRS: Ben Nevis; Hugh Dan MacLennan, The Ben Race (Fort William, 1994), 189-91; The Fell Runner, Autumn 1976, 43-44; Scottish Hill Racing: Ben Nevis Race; Ben Nevis Race 2016 Finishers.

External links

• Official website