The 3 Forts Challenge is a Half Marathon, Full (with a bit extra, so technically an ultra) Marathon and then also a 5 miler thrown in for good measure for those waiting for the others to get back in time for lunch. There's also a canicross option for your four legged friend / loon and a field to sit about in whilst everyone else exercises across the south downs.
Free Pictures are available here: https://gallerylink.info/Three-Forts-Challenge-2025
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| all start for the ultra marathon |
This year it moved to Lancing Sports Centre, instead of over near Hill Barn at Worthing, so a different access route up to the main course loops on the top of the downs, but then all familiar territory from there on in - literally up and around the three iron age forts that are about here: Chanctonbury Ring, Cissbury Ring and errr, the other one... Was Devils Dyke one ?
Anyway - have a look at the routes - they're great - https://www.threefortschallenge.org.uk/contents/427-race-route
The only challenge is - where the hell do you take your photos from ? somewhere you can drive to without having to walk miles carrying kit, and get a good view with the sun in the right direction, find some context, and make it memorable ? Oh and get good coverage so that you do get a nice point that only the marathoners go to, but that means you have a photographer missing the half marathon runners - it turns into a proper puzzle...
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| Because it was May the 4th after all... |
After covering this race for many many years I think we know the best points for a team of three, as well as being locals, and also other races that go over these hills (The Steyning Stinger anyone?), and and personally been going around on these hills quite a bit over the years, so that makes things a little easier to figure things out, however the new start location did put the sun in different place at a different part of the course for the start - which brought along it's own challenges. It did mean that people were more strung out for the later view with Cissbury Ring in the background - so that helped a bit too.
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| Here taking landscapes with runners in the way - Cissbury Ring is the horizon |
The races were sold out and with the weather - well attended with hardly any drop outs - 171 Full 270 Half and 136 five milers - and that's even with 3000 runners at the rival road race taking place over in Worthing. So time to put the thinking hats on how to make the event even more well attended next year - although it does clash with Southampton Half+Marathon as well in 2026...
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| Road runners will never be as happy as this fido |
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| Up and over Steep Down |
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| smiling - because the sun is on his back !! |
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| the Half runners left Steep Down in the distance |
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| They were both doing cartwheels all the way along |
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| Back from Devils Dyke and a quick pub stop |
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| Full baywatch life vest when near the river |
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| it was an invisible egg and spoon race |
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| cool leggings |
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| Portslade runner survives lancing finish |
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| what was all the fuss about ? |
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| pleasant finishing surprise !! |
So that was the Three Forts Challenge - free downloads from the gallery as ever - with memorable event branding and simple single click download - what more do you want ? Big congratulations to the new team at Lancing Manor Leisure Centre on taking it on and making such a success of things.
In other news it was the county athletics championships last weekend at K2 Crawley, and it's nice to get a member of the family mentioned in dispatches... records and everything...
https://www.sussexathletics.net/news/nine-cbps-and-a-world-record-by-jumping-julia/
Last weekend also saw the start of the Macmillan Mighty Hike series in Norfolk as well as the Alzheimers Trek series (Salisbury based towards Stonehenge).
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| we surrendered too |
Alas we lost the Macmillan contract after 7 years - based on cost apparently. But we were quoting for a live on-the-day (saturday) images, catalogued and searchable, with easy single click download, and event branding overlay, as well as easy gallery sharing link and excellent customer experience, plus coverage from about 7 to 8 locations. The stress of doing all that and the software development to cover that was extensive.
The service they now have replaced us with is: Images on the monday after the saturday event, a two-factor registration barrier to get to their free photos (it's really an email data farming grab - there is no legal need to sign in), no direct search page with bib number, no single click download, order basket cross-sell, and no event branding on the images, and also the companies logo slapped across the bottom corner and about 4 locations. Really ?
I don't mind losing a quote on price if the service is the same, but I'm miffed in a most terribly British way to be replaced with such a low-quality alternative service. I feel mislead.
I am of course monitoring the total fundraising for all the charity events on a day by day basis, (as I did last year to prove our business case) so I will be able to see the impact of the weekends hike on increased fundraising, and any extra lift given to donations based on "proof" ie photography being provided - https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/norfolk-coast-mh25
It's too early to see any valid data, so watch that space... but interestingly for the Alzheimers treks - there isn't any lift in fundraising over the weekend - which I find strange - but then - they don't have any free event photos at all...
Anyway, if we had got the Macmillan contract I wouldn't have seen my kids win at Athletics, and that my friends, is priceless...
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| #proudDad1 |
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| #ProudDad2 |
So on that note, we have the first of the Triathlon weekends next - with the legendary Sevenoaks Tri, and the incredible REP Arundel Lido tri in the shadow of the castle - and that has a Long and a Sprint tri distances to deal with. Cold early starts at sunrise with 4:30 alarm clocks, cold mornings and watching three different sports before lunch, and contending with parking machines that don't start until 6am, but you're already taking photos of swimmers by then... all so they can cycle on empty roads. Probably a good idea.
Until next time - please train safely
Anthony
