Running at night in the woods… are you mad!?

No! It’s amazing fun and an incredible experience. Just to be super clear - the forest isn’t lit, we have some lights around the HQ area so the volunteers can see a little but it’s very much down to a decent head torch to lead the way from the moment you get out the car to when you get back in.

I’ll try and answer the most common queries here…

Will I be able to see?

Yes - if you’ve got a good head torch. There is a big difference between the lights you need to be seen when running at night in town and the lights you need to see around the woods. You will find it a much nicer experience if you spend some more money and get a better head torch. Some are like floodlights on your head!

Is it safe?

Yes. Our routes are not urban, they are away from town’s and pubs and so in reality someone has to drive to be there. This greatly reduces any dangers of issues on the course. Of course the sense of danger is a relative and personal one. Personally, I feel much safer in the woods at night than I do in town at night running near pubs etc. We have marshals scattered around but this isn’t parkrun, there isn’t a volunteer on every corner. Sometimes adding excessive marshalling etc. does little to improve actual safety but lots to increase your perception of danger. I fully appreciate as a white, heterosexual man in his 30’s my reality is different to others, and I’m not diminishing that at all. However I feel I can say with confidence the night time element changes the risk profile. There are of course other runners on the route with you - this is one of the benefits of our “tight” courses - you’re never far from a friendly face!

So you mean it’s completely dark….!?

Yes! My top tip would be to get your head torch, drive out of town to an unlit safe place and go for a little walk/run with your headtorch. This will give you a decent idea of what it will be like to run at night in the woods. It feels a bit different, and the first time you see bright green eyes shining back at you it’s a bit of a shock (the retina of animals tends to shine bright with a head torch!) but once you’ve been going for 5 minutes you’ll settle in.

Should I bring a friend for my first go?

You can if you want to! As with all of our events we attract friendly and supportive people. No one will be playing mind games with you and everyone is there to enjoy themselves. We pride ourselves on the supportive nature of our events. There isn’t a £10k cash prize to win so it’s about having fun and enjoying yourself. That said, runs with friends are always more fun so bring them all along!!