On Saturday, Daniel Campbell-Miles of Newport & District Running Club took on the “Man vs Horse” race, an unusual race which pits humans against their equine friends! Afterwards, he was kind enough to put together the below report to tell us all about it! He may or may not have thrown in some horse-related puns.

A debate in a pub in Mid Wales led to the first “Man vs Horse” in 1980. 46 years later and the race is still going strong. The premise is simple: a horse can outrun a person across flat terrain, but over a longer distance and on steep hills, a human might just have the edge.

Daniel Campbell-Miles take s a selfie with some of his competitors!

The theory wasn’t quite borne out, as it took 25 years for the first person to win, but in the four editions which have taken place since Covid, three have seen the horses defeated. This year’s race was on a new course, with several runners saying it had been made tougher to favour the horses again!

Starting at the Neuadd Arms hotel in Llanwyrtd Wells at 11am on Saturday 13 June, 700 runners set off on the 36.5km (22.5 mile) route first, pursued 15 minutes later by 60 horses. Llanwyrtd Wells claims to be the smallest town in the UK. With the race more than doubling the population for the day, it’s certainly the “mane” event.

Daniel fords a river alongside fellow humans and horse competitors! (Photo by Equine Pix)

For the first 40 minutes, it was a relatively peaceful trail run in the Welsh hills. Then the horses arrived. The cavalry charge came on single track trails, with the lead horses absolutely thundering past. The soon familiar shout of “horse” echoed around the valleys while they steadily overtook as the race went on.

The route features river crossings (up to knee deep), bogs (up to knee deep) and grassy fields (up to knee deep), with some steep hills making parts unrunnable. A couple of sections were so steep it wasn’t safe for the horses to climb, and they were diverted to a shallower ascent on more stable ground.

Daniel spots another rival on the trail!

While the horses run the whole race, people have the option to tackle it solo as a team of 3. This means that at the changeover points, runners with fresh legs join the course and I could tell myself that anyone overtaking me MUST be a relay runner. After being passed by dozens of horses early on, the steep climb out of relay changeover point 1 gave me the opportunity to actually overtake a horse! 

At the halfway mark, there was a cheer point for spectators at the top of a hill. Seeing Heather and Acacia here was a great boost for the second half of the race, and gave me the opportunity to have a brief rest. At the foot of that hill, there is a mandatory vet check for the horses. The welfare of the humans, having deliberately chosen to enter, is less of a concern to the organisers.

Daniel was spotted at the cheer point!

The route continued along forest trails, muddy single tracks and across streams before eventually descending back towards Llanwyrtd Wells and the finish line. With around 1,250m (4,100ft) of ascent and varied terrain, both my pacing and fuelling strategies were developed on the hoof. At halfway, I was on course for a finish time of a little over 5 hours, but I got the bit between my teeth in the second half, and was delighted to cross the line in 4:49.  

Not only did my time see me safe from the 6:30 cut off, but it also meant I beat 13 of the 49 horses that finished the race. I was delighted with this, but there were certainly some long faces in the paddock after the race! The finish area had a festival atmosphere with live music, pizza and beer to enjoy in the sunshine.

Humans and horses alike took on some tough terrain! (Photo by Equine Pix)

The changes to the course certainly made it tough, and the horses won at a canter with the first runner home beaten by 4 horses. Overall, the event is a fantastic day out, with a true spirit of camaraderie among runners and riders, with stunning views of mid Wales throughout the race.