About

Winter on the Downs 55 miles

This is a single loop event around the trails of East Sussex and West Sussex. Starting and finishing in the seaside town of Eastbourne, runners will begin over Beachy Head and the famous Seven Sisters before heading up towards Plumpton and out towards Findon along the South Downs Way. The route then loops back around towards Lewes before finishing back in Eastbourne.

The views are spectacular, and the course is a combination of grass trails, farm tracks and woodland/chalk paths. There is 14000 ft of elevation to navigate, but the route is generally very runnable and best described as rolling hills with some longer, steeper climbs also. The weather at this time of year can be unpredictable with anything from glorious crisp sunny days to strong winds, rain, sleet, thick fog, freezing conditions and snow.

East Sussex in particular, and the eastern side of the South Downs, lends itself to being ideal for a race at this time of year with it having probably the driest climate in the U.K. The terrain has fantastic drainage meaning although some places can and will become wet and muddy, it is generally speaking, very runnable all year round.